Cuba's Miguel Díaz-Canel Denies Capitalist Shift Amid US Sanctions

Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel stated in an exclusive interview that Cuba will not surrender or transition to capitalism despite a severe economic crisis and intense pressure from the United States. The country is currently facing extreme shortages of electricity, water, transport, food, and medicine, with garbage remaining on streets for days. Díaz-Canel attributed these conditions to a multidimensional war and an implacable blockade imposed by the government of Donald Trump, which has restricted the entry of fuel and supplies since May.

To address the crisis, the Cuban parliament recently approved a package of 176 economic reforms. These measures allow private entrepreneurs to own more than two businesses and employ over one hundred people, enable the free trading of shares, and permit foreign companies to explore land for up to 99 years. While these steps open the private sector in an unprecedented way, Díaz-Canel maintains that they do not represent a turn toward capitalism and are not concessions to the US government.

Since Díaz-Canel took office, Cuba's GDP has shrunk by 15 percent due to the pandemic and the end of an energy partnership with Venezuela. The leader admitted to some bureaucratic errors and delays in implementing reforms but rejected the idea that internal mismanagement is the primary cause of the crisis. He described the US sanctions as a silent genocide intended to provoke social explosion and the fall of the Revolution. When questioned about potential US military intervention, he stated that he would fight rather than surrender.