MEXICO CITY, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- The decision to suspend an oil shipment to Cuba scheduled for earlier this month was a "sovereign decision," not the result of pressure from the United States, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Tuesday.

State-owned oil company Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex), which handles the shipments, "makes its own decisions," the president said during her daily press conference, noting that Mexico remains committed to solidarity with the Caribbean nation.

Sheinbaum said the decision of when and how the oil is sent is made in line with "what Pemex defines based on the contracts or, in any case, the government's decision regarding humanitarian aid."

"Cuba has been under a blockade for far too many years, and this blockade has caused supply shortages on the island. Therefore, Mexico has always been, and will continue to be supportive," she said. ■