Cuba Is Trying To Use Rum To Pay Off Debts

December 28, 2016 in Daily Bulletin

Venezuela isn’t the only country struggling to pay off debts. Cubans are getting creative too according to the BBC:

  • Cuba and The Czech Republic used to be Communist chums during the Cold War. Back then Cuba took out some loans from the Czechs.
  • Almost $300 million is now due, and rather than expend precious cash, Cuba offered to pay it back in rum and pharmaceutical drugs.
  • The Czech Republic is now a member of the European Union, and Cuba’s medicines aren’t certified in the EU, making them effectively worthless.
  • But the rum may cause Czech negotiators to pause for thought. If the entire debt were paid off this way, it’d be enough to supply the country for more than a century.

Read more at the BBC.