Following the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January, the United States is choking Cuba by cutting off oil shipments.

The government of Cuba has implemented emergency measures as it grapples with fast-dwindling stocks of fuel. According to AFP, Havana’s streets appeared deserted on Monday as emergency measures kicked in.

The US blockade is resulting in shuttered universities, reduced school hours, slashed work week and public transport, reports said. The Cubans who were out and about said that they were worried. “One wonders how long a country can bear these conditions,” nurse Rosa Ramos was quoted as saying by the AFP.

The United Nations said that it is monitoring the situation in the Cuba and is working with the government to provide more support, including food, water and sanitation, and healthcare.

“We are concerned about the growing fuel shortages and their impact on people,” UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said.

Trump administration threatens tariffs on anyone shipping fuel to Cuba:

The Trump administration has also issued an executive order, which threatens tariffs on any country that continues to ship fuel to Cuba.

Mexico, which used to be the second largest supplier of oil to Cuba after Venezuela, has also stopped the shipments under US pressure. Experts in maritime transport tracking have said that no foreign fuel or oil tanker has arrived in Cuba in weeks.

On Sunday, the government of Cuba, led by President Miguel Diaz Canel, has announced that jet fuel will not be available on the island for long-haul flights for at least a month, beginning Tuesday. Several airlines announced suspension of flights to Cuba due to the shortage of jet fuel.

US trade embargo since 1962:

Cuba, a small island in the Caribbean, of 9.6 million inhabitants, has been under a comprehensive US trade embargo since 1962. It has been  mired in severe economic crisis, facing extended power cuts, shortages of food and medicine.

Regime change intentions of the US:

President Donald Trump and his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who is the son of Cuban immigrants, have previously expressed intentions of regime change in Havana.

Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodrigiez condemned the cruel US aggression and said that the blockade is aimed at breaking the will of the Cuban people.