Latin America and U.S. Foreign Policy

The Mexican navy says it is conducting an air and sea search for two vessels carrying humanitarian aid to Cuba that left Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo, on March 20 and failed to arrive in Havana as expected on Tuesday or Wednesday. The boats, whose multinational crews are linked to the Nuestra America Convoy coalition, have sent no distress signal, and Mexican authorities have alerted naval commands and search‑and‑rescue stations across the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico while coordinating with agencies in Poland, France, Cuba and the United States. Organizers say the ships are loaded with food and other supplies for the island, which is facing a deepening humanitarian crisis after President Trump imposed a de facto oil blockade on Cuba in January following the U.S. ouster of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, long its main fuel supplier. The navy has appealed to mariners and maritime authorities in the region to report any sightings or information on the missing vessels, and the convoy says both captains are experienced and the boats are equipped with safety and signaling systems. The incident underscores how U.S. sanctions and embargoes can have cascading humanitarian and security effects in the region, potentially drawing in U.S. search-and-rescue assets if the vessels are not quickly located.