President Donald Trump has turned his focus on Cuba after the US capture of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, saying the US will cut off Venezuelan oil supplies to the island nation as he pressures Havana to “make a deal”.
Venezuela and Cuba have historically had a strong relationship, and Cuba has been a major importer of Venezuelan oil.
“There will be no more oil or money going to Cuba – zero. I strongly suggest they make a deal, before it is too late,” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday.
The Cuban economy is already stagnant, and cutting off oil to the country – which suffers from frequent shortages of food and other staples, in addition to fuel – could lead to widespread unrest.
Mr Trump added that Cuba has provided “security services” in exchange for Venezuelan oil. More than 30 Cubans were killed in the US military action in Venezuela last week, with Cuba saying they were on a military mission in the country.
“Venezuela doesn’t need protection any more from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years,” Mr Trump wrote. “Venezuela now has the United States of America, the most powerful military in the World (by far!), to protect them, and protect them we will.”
Havana responded, accusing the US of destabilising the region and the world.
“Like any country, Cuba has the absolute right to import fuel from those markets willing to export it and that exercise their own right to develop their trade relations without interference or subordination to the unilateral coercive measures of the US,” Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla wrote in a post on X following Mr Trump's comments.
“The US behaves like a criminal and an uncontrolled hegemon that threatens peace and security, not only in Cuba and the hemisphere, but the entire world.”
He added that Cuba has never accepted compensation for the security services it provides.
“Unlike the US, we do not have a government that lends itself to mercenary action, blackmail or military coercion against other states,” Mr Rodriguez Parrilla wrote.
Cuba has been under US military blockade since 1962, following a communist revolution there. Failed assassination and invasion attempts by the US over the years have further fractured the relationship.
Cuba has been accused of engaging in subversive actions across Latin America and the world, and being a prime conduit for Russian and Chinese influence in the region. It has also been accused of human rights abuses.
Former president Barack Obama attempted to thaw relations during his time in office, delisting Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism and even visiting Havana in 2016 – the first time a US leader had visited in almost 100 years. But Mr Trump reversed many of Mr Obama's policies, ramping up sanctions and relisting Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism.
Mr Trump received strong support in the 2024 elections from Cuban Americans in Florida, and his elevation of Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban-American refugees, to Secretary of State indicated that the President would continue his hardline stance against the country.
Mr Rubio has long taken a hawkish view on Cuba, and said earlier this month that Cuba was “in a lot of trouble”. “I don’t think it’s any mystery that we are not big fans of the Cuban regime, who, by the way, are the ones that were propping up Maduro,” he told NBC following the US operation in Venezuela.
The President on Sunday reposted another social media user's post that stated Mr Rubio would soon be president of Cuba, saying “sounds good to me”. He also posted screenshots of other users encouraging him to intervene in the country.
