Key facts
- Senator Marco Rubio announced sanctions on the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP) and other Cuban entities.
- The sanctioned entities are accused of spreading Marxist ideology and engaging in subversive operations.
- Sanctions freeze U.S.-linked assets and prohibit U.S. persons from doing business with the listed organizations.
- Foreign firms transacting with these entities face increased sanctions risk.
- The move is linked to alleged foreign influence operations funded by Neville Roy Singham.
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio announced sanctions on Thursday targeting the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), a Castro-era organization accused of spreading Marxist ideology and engaging in subversive operations abroad. The sanctions also include the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba (MINFAR), Amistur Cuba S.A., Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR), and Minera La Victoria S.A. These measures freeze any U.S.-linked assets of the targeted entities and prohibit U.S. persons, companies, banks, nonprofits, and organizations from conducting business with them, unless licensed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Foreign firms transacting with these entities also face increased sanctions risk, particularly if tied to Cuba's military, intelligence, tourism, mining, or political-control apparatus.
Rubio stated that the Trump Administration "will no longer tolerate radical Marxist regimes in our hemisphere seeking to threaten U.S. national security and engage in influence operations to export their poisonous and evil 'revolution' to our country and around the world." Investigator Jason Curtis Anderson noted that two of the sanctioned organizations are direct partners of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which has 100,000 members and 250 elected officials nationwide. According to investigator Asra Nomani, groups working closely with ICAP, such as the People's Forum, CodePink, BreakThrough News, and Tricontinental, are funded by Neville Roy Singham, a Marxist tech tycoon reportedly living in China. Singham has allegedly pumped $285 million into nonprofits since 2017 that have built close relationships with ICAP and the Cuban government. The article suggests these developments answer questions about a "Cuba connection" behind the "radicalization of America's nonprofit left," implying foreign adversaries may be funding or supporting these revolutionary efforts. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also recently indicated a potential crackdown on dark-money-funded NGOs.