Havana: Massive piles of garbage are piling up on street corners in Havana, the capital of Cuba, resulting in swarms of flies and a foul stench from rotting food scraps. This is the most evident consequence of the United States' efforts to block oil shipments to Cuba, the largest island in the Caribbean.

According to Thai News Agency, Cubadebate, the state-run Cuban media outlet, reported that only 44 out of 106 garbage trucks in Havana are operational due to a fuel shortage, severely delaying garbage collection. Piles of cardboard boxes, used bags, plastic bottles, and scraps of fabric litter street corners throughout the coastal capital. Some residents are forced to rummage through the trash for reusable materials, while motorists and pedestrians struggle to navigate around the piles of garbage blocking their paths.

Additionally, in other cities across the island, which has a population of approximately 11 million, citizens have used social media to warn about health risks. The Cuban communist government has begun implementing fuel rationing measures to maintain basic services, amidst an already severe shortage of food, fuel, and medicine.

Domestic oil reserves have declined rapidly over the past two months after Venezuela, formerly a major exporter, completely stopped supplying oil to Cuba in mid-December. The Mexican government also stated that it needed to suspend oil shipments after the US government threatened to impose tariffs on countries assisting Cuba. However, a Russian newspaper reported last week that Russia is preparing to send crude oil and fuel to Cuba in the near future, although no specific date has been given.

Although the United States has imposed sanctions on Cuba since the 1960s, the Trump administration has intensified these measures in recent months, punishing ships transporting oil to Cuba and threatening tariffs on Cuban oil suppliers, citing the need to pressure for political change in Cuba. The United Nations has repeatedly called on the US to end the sanctions, and leaders from Mexico and Venezuela have warned that blocking fuel routes could lead to a severe humanitarian crisis.