MEP Per Clausen (The Left) has asked the European Commission to take concrete action to protect European companies from the impact of new US extraterritorial sanctions targeting Cuba, warning that firms are already fleeing the island and incurring costs. In a parliamentary question submitted on 10 June 2026, Clausen demands that the Commission activate the EU's Blocking Statute, a legal instrument designed to counter foreign sanctions that the EU considers illegal, and which was previously used in 1996 against similar US measures.
first, for the Commission to outline what actions it plans to take to mitigate the impact on European businesses; second, for an estimate of monthly direct and indirect losses to European companies and the broader economy; and third, for a timeline on when the Blocking Statute will be triggered. The MEP's intervention signals a push for stronger EU sovereignty in trade policy, pitting the protection of European economic interests against the risk of escalating transatlantic tensions. If the Commission activates the statute, European firms would be legally prohibited from complying with US sanctions, potentially exposing them to US penalties but shielding them from EU liability.
The Blocking Statute, adopted in 1996 and updated in 2018, has rarely been used, and its activation would be a significant political statement. The Commission is expected to reply within approximately six weeks, and its answer will indicate whether it views the current US measures as a sufficient threat to warrant such a step. Stakeholders most affected include European companies with operations or investments in Cuba, particularly in tourism, energy, and agriculture, as well as EU-US trade relations and the Cuban economy itself. A decision to trigger the statute would impose compliance costs on EU firms but could also deter future extraterritorial actions by the US.