U.S. Imposes Sanctions on Mariel Port for Sanctions Evasion

This Thursday, the United States imposed sanctions on Mariel Port, determining that the military conglomerate GAESA attempted to bypass U.S. restrictions by transferring the terminal to another state-owned company.

The core of this action targets Terminal de Contenedores de Mariel S.A. and Coral Marítima S.A. for a transaction identified in mid-June. GAESA transferred Mariel Port to Coral Marítima S.A. in an effort to circumvent existing sanctions.

The State Department explicitly outlined the tactic: "Terminal de Contenedores de Mariel S.A. is Cuba's primary container terminal, which transferred Mariel Port to Coral Marítima S.A. in a mid-June transaction to evade sanctions."

A client notification regarding the asset sale, dated June 25 in Artemisa, announced the formation of Terminales Portuarias CORAL S.A. as the new operator. In response, Washington sanctioned both entities involved in the transaction.

This Thursday, the State Department designated nine entities and two individuals linked to the Cuban regime.

These designations were enacted under Executive Order 14404, signed by President Donald Trump on May 1, 2026, and announced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Also designated were CEIBA Investments Limited, a Guernsey-based firm investing in Cuban real estate since 1996, whose Panamanian subsidiary took over a former GAESA joint venture following its designation, and ORBIT S.A., a remittance processor the State Department "almost certainly" considers controlled by GAESA.

In terms of medical missions, sanctions were extended to the Comercializadora de Servicios Médicos Cubanos S.A. (CSMC), described as "the main source of foreign currency for the Cuban regime, generating more revenue than any other economic sector."

The Unidad Central de Cooperación Médica (UCCM), a Ministry of Public Health organization responsible for recruiting professionals for overseas assignments, was also sanctioned.

On an individual level, Minister of Public Health José Ángel Portal Miranda and UCCM Director Gretza Sánchez Padrón were designated.

Washington reiterates that the regime retains between 50% and 95% of the salaries paid by host countries, affecting tens of thousands of professionals deployed in over 50 countries.

In the energy sector, measures targeted CEINPET—the research and development arm of the already sanctioned CUPET—along with ENERSA and EINARBO S.A., both importers of gas and lubricants, with supplies coming from Mexico and India.

This marks the fourth significant round of sanctions in less than three months: on May 7, GAESA was directly designated; on June 23, Almacenes Universales S.A.; and on July 13, GEMAR, ANTEX, COREYDAN, ENETEC, and GECOMEX, among other entities.

Rubio warned that any foreign bank or company providing services to those sanctioned must cease these activities immediately: "Anyone supporting, sponsoring, or servicing these sanctioned actors risks being sanctioned themselves. Foreign banks and other companies providing services or holding funds for these entities must halt these activities immediately."

Congressman Carlos A. Giménez went further in his response: "Any country that continues to engage in the Cuban regime's vile human trafficking scheme is facilitating modern slavery. I will vote to withdraw U.S. funds from countries collaborating in the oppression of the Cuban people."