In a press release released on Thursday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said such a new measure is goal-oriented to “those deeply involved in attempts to silence the voices of the Cuban people” following the July 11 insurrection. Mr. Blinken did not specify the names of the Cuban officials to be sanctioned.

With such sanctions, as well as with “all diplomatic and economic tools” Washington is currently intending to back up the Cuban people, said Mr. Blinken, who did not mention the US blockade as one of the major causes of Cuba´s economic plight.

According to Mr. Blinken, hundreds of Cuban people are still imprisoned after the July 11 riot.

As a result of the riots, Cuban authorities enlightened rioters committed public disorder crimes, instigation to commit a crime and subvert the constitutional order, as well as acts of extreme violence on property, people and authorities.

Havana accused the United States of being accomplice to those incidents, based on the use of technological tools and dissemination of fake news to foster domestic destabilization.

Concerning US sanctions against Cuban officials, Cuba considers them as irrelevant from a practical standpoint, but politically involved, since they are part of the aggressive escalation promoted by the White House.

pll / oda / avr