SAN JOSE, Feb 9, 2026 (AFP) - Nicaragua ended visa-free travel for Cubans, the government said Sunday, severing another lifeline for nationals from the beleaguered island nation.

The move by Nicaragua comes after the United States has complained that Managua allowed Cubans to transit through the country on their way north to the US-Mexico border.

Separately, Washington has been pressuring Nicaragua over political prisoners and tightening the screws on its economic blockade of Cuba.

Nicaragua's interior ministry said Sunday that "holders of ordinary passports" from Cuba would now need a visa to enter the country.

It did not explain the reasoning behind the change but said that there would be no fees associated with the visa.

Cuba has teetered into a fuel crisis as Washington intensifies pressure on its communist government.

The United States cut off oil deliveries to Havana from its key ally Venezuela after US special forces captured leader Nicolas Maduro in early January and took him to New York to face criminal charges.

President Donald Trump also signed an executive order authorizing tariffs on countries selling oil to Havana.

Trump said that Mexico, which has been supplying Cuba with oil since 2023, would stop doing so -- under threat of US tariffs.

The oil shortages have threatened to plunge Cuba into complete darkness, with power plants struggling to keep the lights on.

Starting Tuesday, international flights will no longer be able to refuel on the island, a European airline official told AFP, because of a lack of fuel.