In news from Cuba, lawmakers have passed sweeping economic changes that could lead to the privatization of much of Cuba’s socialist economy. The move comes after intense U.S. pressure and threats by President Trump to take over Cuba. In recent months, the U.S. has blocked nearly all oil shipments from reaching Cuba. This is on top of the U.S. embargo that dates back to the early 1960s. Cuba’s Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz spoke on Thursday.

Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz: “These are proposals to confront the crisis, opening a transformative window that, if not implemented now, could bring irreversible political and social consequences. But I want to reiterate that these transformations do not represent a departure from the socialist project. On the contrary, they follow the logic of its own development.”

In other news from Cuba, former Vice President Ramiro Valdés Menéndez has died at the age of 94. He was a close ally of Fidel and Raúl Castro and was a key figure in the Cuban Revolution.