Archive May 31, 2025

The United States Mission’ head, Michael Hammer, is the subject of a statement of protest from Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Hammer, a career diplomat, was accused of “unfriendly and meddling behavior” since arriving in Cuba in late 2024 by the Foreign Ministry in a press release released on Friday.

The Foreign Ministry wrote that the diplomat is engaging in provocative and irresponsible behavior by inciting Cuban citizens to commit egregious criminal offenses, attacking the constitutional order, or encouraging them to defy the authorities or demonstrate their support for a hostile foreign power’s interests and objectives.

The immunity he enjoys as a representative of his nation cannot be used as a shield against acts that defy the country’s sovereignty and internal order, as in this case, Cuba.

Alejandro Garcia del Toro, the Foreign Ministry’s director of bilateral affairs with the US, delivered the message, according to the ministry.

The statement released on Friday is just the latest sign of Cuba’s and US relations getting more tense, especially since President Donald Trump resigned from office in January.

tensions-related history

However, diplomatic ties between the two nations have been shaky for decades, dating back to the 1960s Cold War. The US government supported efforts to overthrow the newly established Communist government following the Cuban Revolution of 1959 and imposed stringent trade restrictions on the island.

However, efforts have been made to lessen the tensions, most notably during Obama and Joe Biden’s US administrations.

For instance, Obama attempted to normalize relations with Cuba in 2016, but those efforts were resisted during the first Trump administration, which started in 2017.

In the waning months of his term in January, President Biden removed Cuba from the list of “state sponsors of terrorism.”

Trump, however, reversed course on January 20 and placed Cuba back on the list that same day when he took office for a second time on January 20.

Trump’s presidential team also included former US Secretary of State Marco Rubio among other figures who have taken a harsh stance against Cuba. Rubio, who was born in Cuba, has a strong stance in favor of the island’s continued trade embargo.

Meanwhile, the Cuban government has continued to accuse the US of trying to destabilize its leadership.

Hammer’s recent visit to Jose Marti’s tomb was accused of “public and insulting manipulation,” according to the Cuban Foreign Ministry’s statement on Friday.

In a voiceover of Marti’s words, “Respect for the freedom and thoughts of others, even of the most unhappy kind, is my passion: If I die or am killed, it will be for that. That citation, according to critics, is meant as an implied support of island dissention.

Increasing pressure

In a return to the “maximum pressure” campaigns that characterized foreign policy during his first term, there have also been indications that Trump intends to tighten the screws on the Cuban government once more in recent months.

For instance, the Trump administration announced in February that it would yank visas from anyone who works for Cuba’s medical system, which sends thousands of healthcare workers abroad annually, especially in the Caribbean.

The healthcare program has received criticism for its high salaries and stringent employee restrictions. Meanwhile, Trump and Rubio have asserted that the Cuban government is benefiting from the medical system as a form of “forced labor.” However, Havana’s leaders refute that claim.

The US government then criticized Cuba for bringing back a group of dissidents, including famous people like Felix Navarro and Jose Daniel Ferrer, in April.

In a deal brokered by the Vatican earlier this year, Cuba had initially agreed to let Ferrer and Navarro go.

Cuba was supposed to release 553 of its prisoners, many of whom had been ensnared in anti-government demonstrations, and the US was supposed to ease its sanctions against the island in exchange. However, the relief from the sanctions was never implemented.

This month only, a further measure was implemented against Cuba. Under Rubio’s direction, the US Department of State determined that “Cuba did not fully cooperate with US counterterrorism efforts in 2024.” It claimed that Cuba was home to 11 fugitives, some of whom were facing US terrorism-related charges.

In a press release, the State Department stated that “the Cuban regime made clear that it was not willing to discuss their return to face justice in our country.” The United States will continue to support international cooperation on counterterrorism issues. We also continue to advocate for international organizations that “do not stand up for terrorism.”

Under the Arms Export Control Act, which restates Cuba’s ability to purchase weapons and other defense equipment from the US, Cuba was punished by being labeled as a “not fully cooperating country.”

Additionally, Hammer had just announced that the island would face additional sanctions.

On Saturday, May 31, 2018, this is how things are going.

Fighting

• In a Russian attack on the village of Vasyliv Khutir in northeastern Kharkiv, eight people were hurt, according to regional governor Oleh Syniehubov, including two teenagers.

Ceasefire

• Ukraine has resisted US and Russian pressure to agree to a second round of peace talks in Istanbul on Monday, contending that it first needs to hear Russian demands for a ceasefire. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, stated that Russia “is doing everything possible to make sure the next potential meeting does not produce any results.”
• Andrii Sybiha, the foreign minister of Ukraine, added that Kyiv needed to be aware of the Russian ceasefire proposals in advance to ensure that the talks would be “substantial and meaningful,” without stating in detail what Kyiv would do if it failed to receive the document or set a delivery date.
• As long as Western nations stopped arming Ukraine and preventing Kyiv from mobilizing troops, Russia’s UN ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, stated to the UN Security Council that Moscow was ready to consider a ceasefire.

• Lindsey Graham, a well-known US Republican senator, stated during a visit to Kyiv that a bill to impose sanctions on Russia is expected to be introduced by the Republican-led US Senate next week. Graham, who met Zelenskyy on Friday in Kyiv, claimed to have spoken with Donald Trump prior to his trip, and that Moscow is now anticipating taking concrete steps.
• Trump claimed to have been surprised and depressed by the Russian bombing of Ukraine while attempting to arrange a ceasefire, and that both Putin and Zelenskyy were stubborn.
• Trump’s special representative for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, argued that Washington did not want to see Ukraine join the US-led military alliance, and that Russia’s concern about the NATO expansion was fair.
• Moscow was pleased, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who noted that a Russian delegation would be traveling to Istanbul and prepared for discussions with Ukraine on Monday morning.
• The next step, according to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, would be to try to host a meeting between Trump, Putin, and Zelenskyy.

Economy

Donald Trump, president of the United States, has announced that his administration will increase steel import tariffs from 25% to 50%.

Trump defended his most recent tariff increase as a benefit to the nation’s manufacturing sector when speaking to steelworkers and supporters at a rally outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Trump told the audience that “we’re going to increase the steel tariffs in the United States of America from 25% to 50%, which will even more secure the steel industry there.” Nobody will maneuver around that, they say.

It is still unclear how the tariff increase will impact the United Kingdom’s earlier trade agreement with Canada and Mexico or the free-trade agreement there.

The nature of the agreement between US Steel, Japan’s largest steel producer, and Nippon Steel, left ambiguous. Trump continued to promote the two companies’ partnership as a “blockbuster agreement.”

Trump cited the agreement as saying, “There has never been a $14 billion investment in the history of the steel industry in the United States of America.”

Steel tariff increases

Trump and his team’s campaign events on Friday marked their return to the same location where they had previously held numerous election-season campaign events.

Trump’s campaign for reelection in 2024 based on a rally to working-class voters, including those in the Rust Belt, a manufacturing hub that has declined in response to changing industry trends and increased overseas competition.

The region’s key swing states, including Pennsylvania and Michigan, were there on election day, helping to win Trump’s second term.

Trump’s “America First” campaign is seen as a policy platform intended to support the nation’s manufacturing sector. Tariffs and other protectionist measures have been a key component of that agenda.

For instance, Trump announced a preliminary slate of 25-percent tariffs on steel and aluminum in March, prompting significant trading partners like Canada to take retaliatory measures.

He also imposed a blanket 10-percent tariff on nearly all of his trade partners the following month, as well as higher country-specific import taxes. The 10-percent tariff remained in place while those were quickly halted in the midst of widespread criticism and economic shockwaves.

Trump has argued that the tariffs are a crucial negotiation tool to sway more foreign investment into the US economy.

However, economists have warned that price increases will likely increase as a result of US consumers’ pressure being “hard reset” of the global economy, as well as significant tax increases like tariffs.

Given the sudden shifts in his policies, Rachel Ziemba, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, said the most recent tariff increase on steel also indicates that negotiating trade deals with Trump may lead to “limited benefits.”

Additionally, she said, Friday’s announcement suggests that Trump is likely to continue to impose tariffs.

The issue is that, among other things, raising steel tariffs is bad for manufacturing and the energy sector. Overall, Ziemba explains that it is unfavorable to the US economy and adds uncertainty to the macro outlook.

Businesses, interest groups, and states have all filed lawsuits to stop the import tax increases, which Trump has also faced in the US.

For instance, on Thursday, a federal court briefly upheld Trump’s request to impose his extensive list of international tariffs before a short-lived appeals court abruptly paused that decision.

A partnership with Nippon Steel

The anticipated focus of Friday’s rally in Pittsburgh was on Nippon Steel’s proposed acquisition of US Steel, the second-largest steel producer in the nation, prior to the tariff increase’s announcement.

At the start of his speech, Trump stated, “We’re here today to celebrate a blockbuster agreement that will ensure this storied American company stays an American company.”

However, labor unions were largely against the merger between Nippon Steel and US Steel because it had been contentious.

Trump initially stated he would not support the acquisition when he returned to the White House in January, a similar position held by his predecessor, former US President Joe Biden.

He has since changed his mind and backed the agreement, though. He made an announcement last week that Nippon would only have “partial ownership” of US Steel.

Trump stated on Friday that the new agreement would give Nippon a “14 billion commitment to the future” of US Steel, but he would not provide specifics about how the ownership agreement would turn out.

Trump addressed the crowd of steelworkers, “Oh, you’re gonna be happy.” There is a lot of money in your path, the statement reads.

The Republican leader also poetically described the US’s history of steel, describing it as the engine that drives the nation’s economy.

He continued, “If you don’t have steel, you don’t have a country,” adding that the city of Pittsburgh used to produce more steel than most entire nations could.

For its part, US Steel hasn’t given investors any information about the revised deal. Meanwhile, Nippon hasn’t disclosed the terms of the agreement, despite a statement that supports the proposed “partnership.”

Despite being one of its principal opponents, the national United Steelworkers Union has been among the unionized workers affected by the acquisition.

The union questioned whether the new arrangement “makes any significant changes” from the initial proposal in a statement released prior to the rally.

In a statement citing firmer details that had not yet been made, the union said that “Nippon has consistently maintained that it would only invest in US Steel’s facilities if it owned the company outright.

“Over the past few days, there hasn’t been anything in the reporting that suggests Nippon has retreated from this position.”

Following a turbulent start to his second term, Trump has attempted to reassure his base of voters with the Friday rally.