Canada prepares aid for Cuba amid fuel shortages worsened by US oil embargo

Canada announced Monday that it is working on an aid package for Cuba as it faces blackouts and severe fuel shortages worsened by a US oil embargo. Foreign Minister Anita Anand declined to give details beyond that. "We are preparing a plan to assist. We are not prepared at this point to provide any details of the announcement," Anand said. Cuba is facing an increasingly dire energy crisis that has heightened in recent weeks after oil shipments from Venezuela, its main oil supplier, were halted when the US attacked the South American country in early January and arrested its leader. Mexico, another major supplier, then also suspended oil shipments under US pressure. Air Canada and other airlines have cancelled flights to the Caribbean island because of a shortage of aviation fuel on the island. Canadian tourism is vital to Cuba's economy. Global Affairs Canada, a governmental office, has said Canada is Cuba's second-largest source of direct investment to the island, particularly in