Trump seeks to topple Cuba’s communist government by year’s end, report says
WASHINGTON, DC: The Trump administration is actively pursuing regime change in Cuba and hopes to broker a deal to end communist rule on the island by the end of the year, according to a report.
To help engineer a transition, the administration is searching for Cuban government insiders who could assist the United States in pushing the country’s communist leadership out of power, The Wall Street Journal reported January 22.
A fully formed strategy has yet to materialize. According to the outlet, no “concrete plan” currently exists to dismantle the communist government that has ruled Cuba for nearly 70 years.
Still, US officials believe the regime’s grip on power is weaker than ever. That vulnerability follows the ouster of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, which officials say has pushed Cuba’s economy to the edge of collapse. Intelligence assessments cited by the Journal indicate the island is facing chronic shortages of basic goods and medicine, along with frequent blackouts.
Having relied heavily on Venezuela for oil, Cuba could run out of fuel within weeks. The Trump administration is reportedly working to stop any additional Venezuelan oil from reaching Cuba in an effort to further weaken the government.
Trump admin eyes Venezuela-style strategy to pressure Cuba
US officials told The Wall Street Journal that the capture of Nicolas Maduro by American forces and the concessions later extracted from the Venezuelan government are now being viewed as a blueprint for dealing with Cuba.
The January 3 military operation that led to Maduro’s arrest required assistance from an asset embedded within the dictator’s inner circle. In an effort to identify a comparable asset in Cuba, the Trump administration has been meeting with Cuban exiles and civic organizations in Miami and Washington, according to officials.
At the same time, the administration is considering applying additional pressure on Havana while negotiating what officials described as an “off-ramp” for the country’s leadership, including 94-year-old Raúl Castro, the brother of longtime leader Fidel Castro, and Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel.
Trump warned Cuba earlier this month that it was time to “make a deal.”
“Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided ‘Security Services’ for the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NOT ANYMORE!” he posted on Truth Social. “THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA - ZERO! I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.”
The president did not outline the terms of such a deal or specify what consequences Cuba could face if no agreement is reached.
Havana pushes back after Trump warns Cuba over Venezuela ties
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez rejected Washington’s position, saying the Caribbean nation has “the absolute right to import fuel” from any willing exporter “without interference or subordination to the unilateral coercive measures of the United States.”
He added that Cuba, unlike the US, does not engage in “blackmail or military coercion against other States.” Cuba has for years supplied Nicolas Maduro with his personal security detail. The Cuban government said that 32 of its nationals were killed during the US operation in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas.
Trump addressed those deaths directly. “Most of those Cubans are DEAD from last week's USA attack, and Venezuela doesn't need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years," he wrote on Truth Social. "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.”
Rodriguez disputed claims that Cuba was compensated for its role in Venezuela, saying the country had “never received monetary or material compensation for the security services it has provided to any country.”
