Donald Trump has signalled a new flexibility in allowing oil into Cuba, hours before a Russian oil tanker under US sanctions was due to arrive in the Caribbean island amid a de facto oil blockade imposed by Washington.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One the president said: \u201cIf a country wants to send some oil into Cuba<\/a>, right now, I have no problem whether it\u2019s Russia or not.\u201d<\/p>\n Until now, Trump\u2019s administration had in effect prevented all oil shipments to Cuba in an attempt to pressure the government in Havana, while also issuing a series of threatening statements<\/a>.<\/p>\n His comments came after the New York Times reported<\/a> the US would allow a Russian<\/a> tanker full of crude oil to reach Cuba<\/a>, granting a lifeline to the island nation amid a worsening energy crisis.<\/p>\n The report said it was unclear why the Trump administration was allowing the shipment to go through. A move by Washington to block the tanker by force, however, could have raised tensions at sea with Russia.<\/p>\n Russian tanker the Anatoly Kolodkin, which is carrying 730,000 barrels of crude, could soon discharge at Cuba\u2019s Matanzas port if it does not change its current course, according to tracking services MarineTraffic and LSEG.<\/p>\n The thousands of barrels of crude would provide significant relief to Cuba, which, according to President Miguel D\u00edaz-Canel, has not received any oil imports for three months, leading to strict rationing of gasoline and exacerbating an energy crisis<\/a> that has resulted in multiple<\/a> power<\/a> outages<\/a> across the Caribbean island nation.<\/p>\n