US sends Cuba aid via Catholic groups, bypassing Havana

Miami,UPDATED: Jul 22, 2026 02:42 IST

The United States on Tuesday sent a cargo plane carrying food and hygiene kits to Cuba, saying the supplies would go directly to people on the island through Catholic groups and not through the Cuban government. The flight from Miami carried 700 packages and is part of a broader US effort to provide assistance while continuing to increase pressure on Havana.

The shipment is a first tranche worth USD 60 million from a total USD 100 million that the US had offered to Cuba earlier. It comes after months of stronger US action against the Cuban government and related institutions, including sanctions on the country’s military and intelligence apparatus. The imposition of an energy and oil blockade has practically paralysed Cuba’s economy and daily life on the island.

The latest US move on that front came on Monday, when the State Department released a lengthy document accusing Cuba of running a vast espionage and left-wing influence operation in the United States over the past five decades. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, has taken a personal interest in pressing Cuba to make changes to its socialist system, while President Donald Trump has on several occasions suggested that the US could take military action to topple the island’s communist government.

Jeremy Lewin, the State Department’s senior official for foreign assistance, humanitarian affairs and religious freedom, said the partnership builds on a programme that delivered USD 9 million in direct support to the island after Hurricane Melissa last year. He said one challenge had been getting the Cuban government to allow the aid to be distributed and to agree not to intercept it. Since local priests and Catholic groups are handling the distribution, Lewin said, “there’s very little, if any, opportunity for the regime to interfere with the delivery of the assistance.”

Sean Callahan, president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services, said he had visited Cuba a few weeks ago to ensure accountability in the aid distribution. “We’re hoping that this is one small step forward on the humanitarian side,” Callahan said. “But hopefully we’ll bring the people of the United States and Cuba together into the future.” Neither the Cuban government nor its press reported on Tuesday’s humanitarian flight from the US.

Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez had dismissed US announcements of aid that had not yet arrived as “fantasy”, while saying the amount was small compared with the daily losses caused by the energy blockade and US sanctions. “One hundred million dollars would certainly help, although we must acknowledge that it only amounts to five days of the blockade,” he said. The latest flight, carrying the first instalment of the promised aid, underlines both the humanitarian push and the wider strain in US-Cuba ties.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends