The U.S. Coast Guard stated on Friday that Mexico has not requested assistance in locating two sailboats that departed from that country to Cuba with humanitarian aid, and whose whereabouts are currently unknown. "The U.S. Coast Guard was notified yesterday (Thursday) by Mexico's Rescue Coordination Center about two missing vessels. At this time, no assistance has been requested from the U.S. Coast Guard," the U.S. Coast Guard explained in a statement. "We remain vigilant and prepared to provide support if requested. The Mexican Navy is leading the response, in coordination with the Cuban Coast Guard," the text adds. The sailboats departed on March 21 from Isla Mujeres, in the Mexican Caribbean, with humanitarian aid bound for Havana, where they were scheduled to arrive between March 24 and 25. After contact with both boats was lost on Thursday, Mexico's Secretariat of the Navy (Semar) activated a search and rescue plan to locate these vessels, which have a crew of nine of Mexican, Cuban, Polish, French, and American nationality. The ships were carrying several tons of humanitarian aid, including food, medicine, and solar panels, as well as other goods aimed at alleviating the severe scarcity situation on the island, exacerbated by the oil blockade activated by the U.S. following the capture and detention of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in January. The two sailboats were part of a convoy of aid for the island, and a third vessel that departed last Friday from Yucatán arrived in Havana without incident on Tuesday.
