The Cuban regime issued a fabricated statement attributed to the Russian foreign ministry claiming Russia sent 200,000 barrels of oil escorted by a destroyer from President Vladimir Putin's navy, according to a post by journalist Jorge Castro on X. Minutes later, the Russian Embassy in Cuba denied the statement and labeled it fake, as reported in the same post at approximately 10:45 AM UTC on February 23, 2026, within the reporting window from 9:45 AM to 12:45 PM UTC. Jorge Castro described the incident as a complete embarrassment for the Cuban regime in his X post (https://x.com/MagJorgeCastro/status/2025893505411760459), highlighting the rapid denial by the Russian Embassy that followed the regime's announcement by minutes. No previous reports provide related context, and the event unfolded entirely within the three-hour reporting window this morning.
