The Japan Times - Mexico searches for missing Cuba aid boats

The vessels set sail last Friday from Isla Mujeres in southeastern Mexico, but communication with the crew was lost, the navy said Thursday in a statement.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel voiced concern over the boats and said his country was "doing everything possible" to help the search and rescue mission.

The sailboats are part of an international convoy that has brought 50 tonnes of medical supplies, food, solar panels and other goods to support Cuba as a US fuel blockade has deepened the communist-ruled island's energy and economic crisis.

The first shipments arrived by plane from Europe and the United States last week.

A fishing boat that was converted into an aid vessel, which had also left Mexico last Friday, arrived in Cuba on Tuesday, a few days later than planned due to unfavorable weather, currents and battery issues. It had been escorted by a Mexican Navy ship part of the way.

But the two sailboats, whose passengers were of different nationalities, have yet to reach the island.

"Mexican authorities have activated their search and rescue protocol for two sailboats en route to Havana as part of the Convoy, which have not yet arrived," a spokesperson for Our America Convoy told AFP.

"The captains and crews are experienced sailors, and both vessels are equipped with appropriate safety systems and signalling equipment," the spokesperson said.

While the convoy appealed for information on sightings of the vessels, it said it remains "confident in the crews' ability to reach Havana safely."

"Based on the speed of the vessels reported to the Cuban maritime authorities, the window for arrival for the boats in Havana should be between the night of Friday 27 March and midday of Saturday 28 March," they explained.

The Mexican Navy said Thursday that there had been neither "communication nor confirmation of their arrival" in Cuba and that it had alerted naval commanders in the region and its search and rescue stations.

The navy said earlier that the boats were due to arrive between Tuesday and Wednesday.

- 'They were coming to help' -

Naval authorities did not specify the identities or nationalities of the crew members on the missing boats, but said they were maintaining communication with rescue agencies in Poland, France, Cuba and the United States.

The navy is also in contact "with the diplomatic missions of the crew members' countries of origin" to cooperate and exchange information in real time, the statement said.

It said it was using aircraft to search the route between Isla Mujeres and Havana.

It appealed to seafarers and maritime authorities in the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico to report any information or sightings of the missing vessels to the nearest naval authority.

US President Donald Trump imposed a de facto oil blockade on Cuba in January after US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, whose government had been its principal source of Cuba's fuel supplies.

Trump has also threatened tariffs on countries that ship oil to Cuba.

Cuba has suffered seven nationwide blackouts since 2024, including two last week alone.

In Havana's seafront, where the sailboats were supposed to arrive, some Cubans expressed concern about the missing boats.

"They were coming to help and now they are missing," said Yudisel Otto, a 45-year-old taxi driver, told AFP. "It's sad."

H.Hayashi--JT