The demonstrations were mainly triggered by people's discontent over Cuba's economic hardships and shortages of basic supplies. These are mainly a result of the US' decades-long sanctions against Cuba. Despite dialogue during the Obama era, the Trump administration tightened sanctions on Cuba, further crippling their economy. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Sunday that the protests were a form of "systemic provocation" by dissidents doing the bidding of the US. He said Washington in recent months had sought to destabilize and weaken the island's economy as part of a policy designed to "provoke a massive social implosion," according to New...
