Havana, Cuba – “I have two bits of news for you: one good and one bad.”
Those were the first words Elena Garcia, a 28-year-old web designer, heard when she woke up on the morning of January 3, hours after a United States military operation abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
“The good news is that the water has arrived,” her boyfriend continued. “The bad news is that they kidnapped Maduro, and that means that this year we will surely have blackouts.”
Supply shortages are endemic throughout much of Cuba. In Villa Panamericana, the neighbourhood in Havana where Garcia lives, deliveries of fresh water had not arrived for a week.
Still, compared to the rest of the city, the neighbourhood is relatively privileged: It suffers from fewer power outages than other areas.
But until this month, Cuba has been able to rely on Venezuela for support, including through shipments of the fuel needed to run its electrical grid.
That changed on January 3. With Maduro’s ouster, Cuba risks losing one of its closest allies in the Western Hemisphere.
By January 11, US President Donald Trump announced Venezuela would no longer supply Cuba with oil or money.
The threat of ending Venezuela’s support is expected to further devastate the Cuban economy — and possibly trigger unrest.
So far, since the US attack on Venezuela, the streets of Havana have been calm, and the Cuban government has pledged to maintain ties with Venezuela.
By contrast, debates are raging on social media about what will come next, as the US flexes its might.
“There are people who fear an invasion and people who are calling for one,” said Amanda Terrero, 28, a communications professor at the University of Havana.
She explained that the country is gripped with uncertainty about what the future holds.
“People are even making contingency plans to leave the country,” she said.
