Cuba is strengthening its mechanisms to prevent and combat illicit drug use and trafficking, upholding a zero-tolerance policy. Justice Minister Óscar Manuel Silvera Martínez led a press conference emphasizing a preventive approach that has kept the country from becoming a production or transit route. Officials reported thwarting 72 smuggling attempts over the past year.
At a press conference, Justice Minister Óscar Manuel Silvera Martínez, president of the National Drug Commission, emphasized Cuba's firm commitment to preventing its territory from serving as a storage, transit, or destination point for narcotics. The policy relies on a preventive approach that has restricted illicit drugs' presence in the country, despite the U.S. blockade limiting access to detection technologies and financial resources.
The National Drug Commission, established in 1989 and restructured in 1998 under the Ministry of Justice's chairmanship, coordinates institutions, mass organizations, and social actors. It has conducted control visits to nearly all provinces, regional exchanges, and communication efforts including television programs, community meetings, and videoconferences for students, workers, and the general public to raise awareness of risks and encourage rejection of drug use and trafficking.
The national strategy focuses on two pillars: criminal prosecution of trafficking-related crimes and social prevention to build a culture of responsibility. Colonel Juan Carlos Poey Guerra, head of the Ministry of the Interior's Specialized Anti-Drug Enforcement Agency, reported that from 2024 to mid-2025, authorities foiled 72 attempts to introduce drugs such as marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, and synthetic cannabinoids from 11 countries. They have identified 41 new synthetic drug formulations, mostly originating from the United States, and enhanced training, scientific methods, and technology.
First Colonel Yvey Daniel Carballo Pérez, Chief of Staff of the Ministry of the Interior's Border Guard Troops Directorate, noted Cuba's position on a key trafficking route from South America to the United States. Yet, he affirmed the country is neither a destination, transit point, nor storage site due to political resolve. They face rising drug packages washing ashore from failed operations in nearby waters, along the 5,746-kilometer coastline. Coastal communities are vital in reporting discoveries. For instance, after Hurricane Melissa, 792.5 kilograms of marijuana and 12.25 kilograms of cocaine were seized on Guantánamo's northern coast. In recent years, 14 speedboats and 39 traffickers were captured, linked to 4,487 kilograms of drugs. Operations adhere to international maritime law and avoid human casualties.