When will Western Union service be reestablished in Cuba? This is what the remittance agency says 

Western Union announced the suspension of its money transfer services to Cuba with immediate effect, generating uncertainty and concern among the Cuban community.

 The company has not provided an estimated date for the resumption of the serviceThe government press on the island laments, leaving thousands of families without a crucial way to receive remittances from abroad.

A new chapter in the interruption of remittances to Cuba

This is not the first time Western Union has suspended operations in Cuba. The company resumed its service in May last year, after an interruption in 2020 during the Trump administration. At the time, the suspension was attributed to sanctions against the financial company Fincimex, as part of the U.S. "hard-line" policy toward the island.

Two years later, in 2022, the service was reestablished with limitations, but was again interrupted due to technical problems in Cuba. The recent suspension has provoked various reactions, both in Cuba and abroad.

Mixed reactions to the suspension of Western Union

The Cuban state press has described the suspension as "a turn of the screw by the U.S. government in its irrational hard-line policy towards the island", highlighting the negative impact it will have on "countless Cuban families".

For their part, some Cubans have expressed their frustration and concern on social networks. José Valdés commented: "To think that some time ago it was inadmissible and against revolutionary principles to have contact with the evil Empire and now they almost beg them to send remittances and invest".

Others, such as Richel Leyva Suarez, have questioned the effectiveness of dollarization in Cuba: "They only need a law prohibiting the dollar in Cuba for you to see where dollarization is going to end up".

Liberato Cimarrón proposed to look for alternatives for sending remittances: "Let them look for ways of sending remittances, but let GAESA not take a cent, it is enough of paying into the military coffers".

The future of remittances to Cuba in uncertainty

The suspension of Western Union leaves many Cuban families with the need to look for other options, as they depend on remittances to cover their basic needs.

"Western Union has made the decision to suspend its money transfer services to Cuba, effective immediately. At this time, there is no definite time frame for the resumption of our service, nor is there any certainty that it will occur. We sincerely regret any inconvenience this may cause," the remittance agency responded to one of our editors.