Havana has announced it is canceling scheduled flights between Cuba and Argentina, saying Buenos Aires is refusing to refuel planes fuel due to the sanctions imposed by the USA, reported the Spanish news agency EFE, quoted by BTA.
„As a result “Cubana de Aviation“ has been forced to end regular flights between Cuba and Argentina, which have been maintained for 39 years," the Cuban Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Cuba called it an arbitrary measure by Argentina's mostly state-owned Yacimientos Petrolificadores Fiscales, saying it was a "obvious demonstration" of the "genocidal blockade" of Washington against Cuba.
„It is contradictory that freedom is proclaimed at all costs, while the freedom of a company that strictly complies with the regulatory provisions of Argentina and the International Civil Aviation Organization is restricted,”, the ministry said. According to Cuba, the decision, which affects passengers on the Havana-Buenos Aires route, represents a violation of the contract between the oil company and “Cubana de Aviacion“ in addition to Argentine laws themselves.
The Foreign Office said the state-owned airline was looking at “alternatives to maintain operations that are already planned”, such as hiring other companies to cover the flights, but added that it had not received a “satisfactory answer on how it would be secured the sale of fuel“. The ministry said that the “Cubana de Aviacion“ it suffers especially from the tightening of American sanctions against the island in recent years, as well as from the inclusion of Cuba in the list of countries sponsoring terrorism.
„Cuba will continue to condemn cases of extraterritorial application of the blockade and demand the end of this illegal policy, which constitutes a gross violation of international law and provokes the categorical rejection of the international community,”, the statement concludes. On April 24, the state-owned airline announced the temporary cancellation of flights between Havana and Buenos Aires, saying their planes had been denied refueling from Argentina. “Cubana de Aviation“ then said in a statement that the companies had invoked the "provisions of the US embargo measures against Cuba" to not supply fuel to its planes.
The airline resumed its connection between Havana and Buenos Aires in May 2023 after the suspension imposed by the pandemic. Between January and March 2024, the number of Argentine travelers to Cuba increased by 44% compared to the same period in 2023, reaching 12,753 people. It is the first dispute between the Cuban government and the administration of far-right Argentine President Javier Millay since he took office in December. Cuba was one of the few countries in the region that did not congratulate Millay after he won the November 2023 election.