Meliá Group Ends 34 Cuba Hotels by Week's End as US Sanctions Make Operations Impossible
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jul 21
Meliá Group Ends 34 Cuba Hotels by Week's End as US Sanctions Make Operations Impossible
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jul 21
Summary
Meliá told Spain’s market regulator it will cease all Cuba operations by the end of the week, saying new US sanctions have made even minimal operational stability impossible.
Washington’s latest measures, ordered by President Donald Trump in May, target a broad set of Cuban-linked individuals and threaten foreign banks and companies that work with them.
The exit goes beyond Meliá’s June plan to stop operating 15 of its 34 Cuban hotels; Tuesday’s statement covers the remaining 19 properties run with Cuba’s tourism ministry.
Meliá, one of Cuba’s largest foreign hotel operators with 14,000 rooms, said it would try to limit disruption for staff, suppliers and clients as it winds down.
The withdrawal deepens pressure on Cuba’s economy, already under a US embargo since 1962 and a near-total block on oil shipments since January.