Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 27, 2026
1 min readLast updated: March 27, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleCuban officials have sought the Vatican’s assistance, including from Pope Leo XIV, to urge the Trump administration to ease its oil embargo, amid worsening fuel shortages and energy outages due to a U.S.-imposed total embargo.
March 27 (Reuters) - Cuban officials have petitioned the Vatican to help persuade the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to ease its oil embargo in senior-level meetings with Vatican officials including Pope Leo, the Washington Post reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report. The Vatican press office, the White House and the Cuban government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Havana and Washington entered talks earlier this month as an oil blockade imposed by Trump pushes the Communist-run nation deeper into economic crisis. Reports had suggested the Trump administration was seeking to remove Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel from power.
(Reporting by Anusha Shah and Chandni Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Aidan Lewis)
Cuban officials sought the Vatican's help to persuade the US administration to ease its oil embargo, hoping mediation would alleviate Cuba's worsening economic crisis.
The article references the administration of US President Donald Trump in connection with the oil embargo on Cuba.
The Washington Post reported that senior Cuban officials met with Vatican officials, including the Pope, to request assistance in easing the US oil embargo.
As of the article's publication, the Vatican press office, the White House, and the Cuban government had not responded to requests for comment.
Cuba is facing a deepening economic crisis as the oil embargo imposed by the Trump administration limits access to crucial resources.
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