Congressman Carlos Gimenez proposes maximum-pressure tariffs against countries that finance the ‘modern slavery’ of Cuban doctors

In a forceful conversation with journalist Karina Yapor, Republican Congressman Carlos Giménez launched a categorical accusation: the Cuban dictatorship enslaves its doctors and nurses, and countries such as Mexico and Venezuela are complicit in financing this system through programs that benefit the regime of Miguel Díaz-Canel.

Gimenez not only denounces what he describes as "human trafficking" and "modern slavery," but proposes a final solution: maximum-pressure tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration against these nations.

A system of exploitation disguised as aid

According to Giménez, countries with shortages of medical personnel, such as Venezuela and Mexico, contract with the Cuban regime to send doctors and nurses. However, the money does not reach those who do the work. "Those countries pay the regime, the Cuban government," the congressman explains. "In this way, the regime receives income to maintain its power, but the people who are doing the work receive no benefits whatsoever. It is a system of modern slavery."

For Giménez, this model not only perpetuates the oppression of the Cuban people, but also turns the governments that participate into active accomplices. "They are participating in modern slavery," he states, pointing out that the income obtained is the oxygen that keeps afloat a dictatorship incapable of feeding its people or keeping the lights on.

Mexico and Venezuela in the spotlight

Venezuela, for years, has exchanged oil for Cuban doctors, an arrangement Gimenez sees as a pillar of support for the Diaz-Canel regime. But now, Mexico has joined the list. Since the era of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, and continuing under the presidency of Claudia Sheinbaum, the country has hired close to 200 Cuban doctors through this program.

For the congressman, this is no coincidence. "I believe that the Cuban dictatorship, seeing the difficult situation in Venezuela, is trying to get closer to Mexico to continue having subsidy," he says.

Gimenez does not hesitate to question the conscience of these governments. "They are helping the regime to stay in power and they are also participating in what is human trafficking and slavery," he assures. His proposal is clear: if these countries want to avoid sanctions, they should pay Cuban doctors and nurses directly, not the regime. "Like almost every contract I've ever seen in my life: you don't pay a country, you pay a person," he stresses pragmatically.

Tariffs as a form of pressure

The Republican proposes specific tariffs against Mexico, Venezuela and any nation that maintains these agreements with Cuba. "If they don't want the United States to put these tariffs on them, what they have to do is pay directly to the people who are doing their job," he insists.

This approach, he asserts, could be implemented quickly by the executive branch without the need for a bill in Congress, although he is willing to cooperate if additional measures are required. "I am willing to help this administration in that work," he promises.

The congressman has already raised his proposal to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, although he acknowledges that he has not yet received a response. "I know he's pretty busy with what's going on with the administration, which is going a thousand miles an hour," he says, referring to the tariff negotiations with other nations that occupy Rubio's agenda. However, Gimenez is confident that his initiative will gain traction, as he considers it intolerable that the United States "looks the other way" in the face of these abuses.

A critique of Marxism and a message to Sheinbaum

Beyond tariffs, the congressman sees in this system a reflection of the failure of the Cuban model. "It is a system that does not work. An economy that does not work. Simply because it is a Marxist system," he says. For him, the regime uses communism as a tool to cling to power, while its people suffer the consequences of a collapsed economy. The doctors' programs, in this context, are a desperate lifeline for a government without resources.

Addressing Mexico specifically, Gimenez has a direct message for President Claudia Sheinbaum: support for Cuba will not stop without external pressure. "She sympathizes with the regime in Cuba and that is why I believe she is going to continue giving this exchange with them to give them oxygen and more income from the Mexican people with the excuse of the few doctors in Mexico," he said. For him, Sheinbaum, whom he describes as a leftist, will only respond to the threat of tariffs. "The only way for this to stop is with pressure," he warns.

A call to action

Carlos Gimenez pulls no punches: his bid for maximum-pressure tariffs seeks not only to punish complicit countries, but to send a clear message: the United States will not tolerate modern-day slavery in its neighborhood. As he awaits the reaction of Marco Rubio and the Trump Administration, the congressman maintains his uncompromising stance: "We have to stand up to these kinds of individual abuses against a nation that is, in truth, oppressing its people."