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Cuban president: Chinese rice to reach ‘millions of consumers’

People line up to buy papaya at a weekly food fair in Alamar, Havana province, Cuba, Saturday, May 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa) (Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All right reserved) (Ramon Espinosa/AP)

HAVANA — Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel released a statement on Sunday thanking the Chinese government for 15,000 tons of rice in aid.

Hua Xin, the Chinese ambassador to Cuba, released a statement describing the delivery as “the first batch of the 60,000-ton emergency aid donation.”

“That noble gesture of solidarity will reach millions of consumers,” Diaz-Canel wrote on X.

President Donald Trump’s administration has long considered the Chinese and Russian presence in Cuba as a national security threat.

Beijing’s crucial lifeline for Havana also includes strategic debt restructuring, credit lines, and investments in solar energy infrastructure.

Earlier this month, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that Cuba accepted $100 million in U.S. aid to be sent and distributed by church charities.

“It must be directly with you, the Cuban people, not with GAESA,” Rubio said about the Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A., a Cuban military conglomerate that the Trump administration recently sanctioned.

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Andrea Torres

Andrea Torres

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.