A Pair of Cuba-Headed Relief Ships Listed Missing following Departing Mexico.

A extensive search and rescue mission is presently under way in the Caribbean waters for two lost sailing vessels loaded with aid cargo journeying from the Mexican coast to Cuba.

Maritime Search and Rescue Missions Initiated

The Mexican government has deployed naval assets and military search aircraft to find the missing boats, which were transporting a minimum of nine total sailors, as stated by a navy statement.

The ships had been expected to arrive in the Cuban capital on either Tuesday or Wednesday, but there has been radio silence from them and zero verification of their safe arrival, the navy said.

The Situation of Relief to the Island

The island nation has leaned on aid convoys from Mexico over the past few weeks, as the country grapples with widespread power outages across the country.

"The skippers and their teams are seasoned mariners, and each boat are equipped with suitable safety systems and signalling equipment," an official involved in the effort said.

The nine-person crew are from France, Poland, the United States, and Cuba. Mexico said it has opened communications with coast guard agencies from the involved countries along with their consular staff.

"Our team is collaborating completely with the authorities and remain confident in the crews' ability to make it to Cuba without incident," the statement continued.

Previous Relief Shipment

Just days before, the Cuban government widely celebrated and officially received another boat that had transported a significant amount of relief supplies to the country.

That ship, called "a new Granma" after the yacht in which Castro returned to Cuba to start the Cuban Revolution in the mid-20th century, brought solar panels, pharmaceuticals, formula milk, bikes and foodstuffs.

Larger Political Backdrop

Non-governmental organizations and volunteers have largely spearheaded initiatives to bring essential supplies to Cuba beginning in January, a period which saw a oil sanctions on the Communist-run nation began.

International organizations have since warned of ""critical" shortages of supplies, with in excess of 50k surgeries cancelled in Cuba due to electricity supply constraints.

Foreign policy tensions have been ramped up lately, with comments from different leaders highlighting the complex state of diplomatic ties.

Responding to certain comments, a senior government figure insisted that "the governance model of Cuba is not subject to discussion."

Accounts suggest that early stages of talks had begun, although their present status remains unclear.

The Mexican navy said it was committed to using all of the resources at its disposal to locate the sailboats and secure the safety of the people on board.

At this time, there has been no official comment on the missing boats by the Cuban government.