White House defends Cuba sanctions as UN warns of harm

The Trump administration defended its sanctions on Cuba, saying they target regime leaders and entities despite UN warnings that the measures are causing widespread harm to civilians and restricting access to essential services. The United Nations human rights chief said the sanctions are having severe humanitarian impacts, while Havana and Washington remain locked in escalating political tensions.

Jasper Ward / Reuters

June 11, 2026

White House defends Cuba sanctions as UN warns of harm

A photo of the Cuba flag, courtesy of Wix

Mauro Lima/Unsplash via Wix

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration on Wednesday defended its sanctions on Cuba after the United Nations human rights chief warned that U.S. measures were causing “widespread harm to the population and endangering lives.”

“These sanctions target the leaders and entities who sustain the regime’s malicious campaign to subvert and destabilize U.S. national security,” a White House official told Reuters in response to a request for comment.

Washington has imposed sanctions on a wide range of Cuban entities and officials, including the island’s president, as part of an effort to increase pressure on Cuba’s communist leadership. The measures follow the United States’ declaration of a national emergency earlier this year, which included provisions targeting countries supplying oil to Cuba. The policy shift has been linked to frequent power outages across the island.

Volker Türk said on Monday that the sanctions were undermining the Cuban population’s human rights, particularly their access to essential goods and services such as water, food, and healthcare.

“Such severe sanctions packages that target entire sectors of an economy and produce broad, indiscriminate and harsh effects on populations are incompatible with basic principles of international human rights law,” Türk said.

The White House official cited previous remarks from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, reiterating that Washington remains open to a new chapter in relations with Havana.

The official added that the only obstacle to progress is Cuba’s current leadership, saying the country’s leaders should “make a deal with the United States before it is too late.”

Cuba’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla posted on social media earlier in the day, saying the U.S. energy blockade has harmed the Cuban population and disrupted the work of international agencies.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly signaled support for stronger action against Cuba. Cuban officials have strongly criticized suggestions of possible military action, with Rodríguez describing such threats as potential violations of international law. -Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; Editing by Don Durfee and Cynthia Osterman/Reuters