People spend the night in darkness on the Malecón during a blackout in Havana, Cuba, on Saturday, March 21, 2026.
Ramon Espinosa/AP
hide caption
toggle caption
Ramon Espinosa/AP
ON AIR FORCE ONE — President Donald Trump said Sunday night that he has “no problem” with a Russian oil tanker off the coast of Cuba delivering relief to the island, which has been brought to its knees by the U.S. oil blockade.
“We have a tanker out there. We have no objection to anybody being put on a boat because they need it…they have to survive,” Trump told reporters on his way back to Washington.
Asked whether the New York Times report was true that tankers would be allowed access to Cuba, Trump said: “I told them, if any country wants to send some oil to Cuba right now, I have no problem, whether it’s Russia or not.”
The oil tanker, carrying about 730,000 barrels of oil, sank off the eastern tip of the island on Sunday night and was scheduled to reach the city of Matanzas by Tuesday, tracking data shows. Journalists working for Cuban state media also reported the boat’s expected arrival, although Cuban officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The ship Anatoly Kolodkin has been sanctioned by the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom following the war in Ukraine.
Trump, whose government has come down more aggressively on its Caribbean rival than any US government in recent history, has effectively cut off Cuba from major oil shipments in an effort to force regime change. The blockade has had a devastating impact on citizens Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio say they want to help, leaving many desperate.
Island-wide blackouts have rattled Cubans already reeling from years of crisis, and shortages of gasoline and basic resources have crippled hospitals and crippled public transportation.
Experts say the estimated shipment could produce about 180,000 barrels of diesel – enough to meet Cuba’s daily demand for nine or 10 days.
Island-wide blackouts have rattled Cubans already reeling from years of crisis, and shortages of gasoline and basic resources have crippled hospitals and crippled public transportation.
Cuba has long, for decades, been at the center of the geopolitical tug-of-war between the US and Russia. Trump on Sunday rejected the idea that allowing the boat access to Cuba would help Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“It doesn’t help him at all. He loses a boatload of oil, that’s all. If he wants to do it, and if other countries want to do it, it doesn’t bother me too much,” Trump said. “It’s not going to have any effect. Cuba is gone. Their governance is bad. Their leadership is very bad and corrupt and it’s not going to make any difference whether they get the oil boats or not.”
He said: “Whether it’s Russia or anyone else, I would love to let it in because people need heat and cool and all that stuff.”
