• rockSlayer@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      They specifically pointed to the embargo twice, as points for wavering food security and oil for energy. It’s part of the problem.

      • Rapidcreek@lemmy.worldOP
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        1 month ago

        Sure you can blame the US first, but we don’t run or maintain their electrical plants. There is a paragraph that describes how they get their oil. They pump half of it. B%W, they can buy food from the US. It’s not part of the embargo.

        • rockSlayer@lemmy.world
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          1 month ago

          So a couple things:

          1. I’m not entirely blaming the US embargo, the Cuban government is also at fault and are responsible for ensuring food security and electrical production.
          2. It’s ridiculous to claim that the embargo hasn’t seriously hindered the growth of Cuba or made it more difficult to maintain status quo for their citizens. The embargo prevents any trade with the Cuba if it involves the US, including foreign companies that want to do business in the US. Food and medicine purchases are allowed but still bound with significant red tape.
          • Rapidcreek@lemmy.worldOP
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            1 month ago

            Well, it’s an island. So, there’s little room for growth in the first place. Secondly,they can and do trade with various countries, including Mexico and Canada, which do a lot of business with the US.

            • rockSlayer@lemmy.world
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              1 month ago

              There’s more to growth than literal expansion. The Helms–Burton Act is what I’m referring to. The companies that trade with Cuba are banned from operating in the US. That doesn’t mean no country can trade with Cuba, it’s just forcing foreign companies to choose between one of the wealthiest and most populous countries in the world and a poor little island in the Caribbean.

              • Rapidcreek@lemmy.worldOP
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                1 month ago

                There have been no Caribbean islands I have been to that are what you would call industrial strong. Little resources.

                Companies can and do business with Cuba. They just can’t use US banking or sell to the US government. It’s not slowing Cuba down.

                • rockSlayer@lemmy.world
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                  1 month ago

                  It’s like you have no historical context for the topic you’re trying to discuss. They do have some heavy industry, they produce 4% of worldwide nickel (and therefore also cobalt). Oil production is also heavy industry. They didn’t develop it very much because it’s an island, so after the Cuban revolution they relied on the USSR for heavy industry. That was a major flaw in international soviet socialism, relying on the USSR for most industry. However it made sense for an island nation, but impacted them substantially after the USSR was illegally disbanded.

                  This article has the backdrop of the energy revolution program within the country, started in 2005 to diversify energy production and fight climate change. You want to talk about how the embargo hasn’t impacted them? Let’s start with how they’ve been trying to modernize and decarbonize for 20 years, but hurricanes, the embargo, and the historical effects of the embargo have hindered this program.

                  • PugJesus@lemmy.world
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                    1 month ago

                    but impacted them substantially after the USSR was illegally disbanded.

                    Jesus Christ.

                  • Rapidcreek@lemmy.worldOP
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                    1 month ago

                    They don’t develop their nichel resources because there is a lot of nichel in this world. Canada and Australlia are the largest producers.

                    For a country that you believe wants to diversify their energy, they’ll be in the dark tonight.

    • queermunist she/her@lemmy.ml
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      1 month ago

      Even in a country that for decades has been accustomed to frequent outages amid a series of economic crises, the grid failure was unprecedented in modern times,
      […]
      They also blamed breakdowns in old thermoelectric plants that haven’t been properly maintained because of a lack of hard currency due to U.S. sanctions, as well as insufficient fuel to operate some facilities.

      The blockade is clearly the problem. Cuba is under siege and this is an obvious result.

      • PugJesus@lemmy.world
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        1 month ago

        “Under siege” is when one country won’t trade with you, and the more one country won’t trade with you, the more siege it is.

        The blockade is clearly the problem.

        “The blockade”

        Jesus fuck, are you being serious right now