Cuba's state oil company is the latest organisation to get hit with US sanctions as President Donald Trump's administration continues to heap pressure on Venezuela.
The US Treasury Department announced Wednesday that Cubametales, which ships oil to and from the island country, was being added to the Office of Foreign Asset Control's (OFAC) list of blocked persons and property, accusing it of supporting the Nicolas Maduro regime in Venezuela.
"Maduro is clinging to Cuba to stay in power, buying military and intelligence operatives in exchange for oil," Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.
"Treasury’s sanctions on Cubametales will disrupt Maduro’s attempts to use Venezuela’s oil as a bargaining tool to help his supporters purchase protection from Cuba and other malign foreign actors."
Being put on the list bars individuals, businesses and ships from doing business in the US and accessing US financial markets.
The US has been aggressive in recent months in using sanctions to topple the Maduro regime, most notably sanctioning Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA in January, on top of taking a harder line toward Cuba.
In April, it listed PB Tankers and five of its six ships over a charter the 51,062-dwt Silver Point (built 2001) had with Cubametales. Wednesday, the company was delisted, after terminating the charter and committing to future compliance.
It has also banned cruise trips to Cuba over its support for Maduro and listed Liberian-owned and Greek-owned tankers.
The Treasury Department said a 2000 agreement between Cuba and Venezuela saw the South American country trade oil for medical services, technology and military assistance.
"The goods and services Cuba provides Venezuela continue to fuel the corruption of Maduro and his associates and help maintain their control over the increasingly impoverished Venezuelan people whose oil has been shipped to Cuba in support of dictatorship," the Treasury Department said.
In an April speech to the Cuban national assembly, former President Raul Castro likened the sanctions to "blackmail."
"We will never abandon our duty of acting in solidarity with Venezuela," he said.
"We have told the U.S. administration Cuba is not afraid and will continue building the future of the nation without outside interference."
