The Order authorizes the U.S. to impose additional import tariffs on goods from any country that directly or indirectly sells or supplies oil to Cuba. It establishes a tariff system (to be implemented by the State and Commerce Departments) that can add duties on imports from designated countries, and allows the President to modify or lift measures if countries take steps aligned with U.S. security and foreign‑policy objectives.
The fact sheet authorizes the Secretaries of State and Commerce to “take all necessary actions, including issuing rules and guidance,” to implement the tariff system. In practice that typically includes (and agencies have used these tools before): identifying and designating affected countries, issuing implementing regulations or guidance, setting tariff rates or schedules in coordination with U.S. trade authorities, and directing Customs and Border Protection to collect assessed duties on imports from designated countries.
Two federal statutes are normally invoked: the National Emergencies Act (NEA) permits the President to declare a national emergency; the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorizes the President during a declared emergency to regulate or prohibit financial transactions and imports (the authority the administration has used to impose tariffs). These uses have been legally contested and are the subject of ongoing litigation and congressional scrutiny.
Countries most likely to be affected are those that supply crude oil, refined petroleum, or fuel products to Cuba—either directly by selling oil to Cuba or indirectly by transshipping or otherwise enabling deliveries. The administration would designate affected countries based on evidence of oil transfers or facilitation; the fact sheet says the State and Commerce Departments will issue rules and guidance to identify and implement designations.
The White House fact sheet asserts these claims but provides no public primary evidence in the release. Independent reporting has documented Russian military and intelligence cooperation with Cuba and long‑standing concerns about Russian listening posts, but claims that Cuba hosts Russia’s largest overseas signals‑intelligence facility and that it provides safe haven to Hezbollah/Hamas are asserted by the administration and debated; open-source confirmation is limited and often relies on intelligence or unnamed sources.
If implemented, the tariff system would raise duties on imports from designated countries. That can increase costs for U.S. importers (who often pass costs to U.S. firms or consumers), disrupt supply chains that rely on affected suppliers, and raise consumer prices for affected goods; the scale depends on which countries and products are targeted and whether importers can find alternative suppliers. U.S. customs agencies would collect the additional duties at entry.
A National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM) is a presidential directive used to set national‑security policy and coordinate agencies; it typically provides policy guidance and agency responsibilities but does not itself create the force of law in the way statutes do. An Executive Order is a presidential directive that directs executive‑branch operations and, when based on statutory authority, can have binding legal effect on agencies and individuals. NSPMs are generally internal policy instruments; Executive Orders are more formal and often published to carry out statutory authority.