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By Brendan Cole
Senior Reporter
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U.S. President Donald Trump has said Cuba is "failing" having been hit hard by Washington’s capture of Nicolás Maduro, the leader of Venezuela, which was once the Caribbean island’s top oil supplier.
Trump said on Tuesday, "Cuba will be failing pretty soon."
Newsweek reached out to the Cuban Foreign Ministry for comment.
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Why It Matters
The Trump administration has talked tough on Cuba, the communist-ruled island with which the United States has maintained an embargo for decades. After Trump ordered a raid on Venezuela in which Maduro was captured this month, he has suggested he would also act on Cuba.
Trump said on January 11 that after Maduro’s capture, no Venezuelan oil or money will go to Cuba, a close ally of Caracas. Trump’s comments on Tuesday warn of a failing economy on the island, which comes amid reports that his administration is aiming to remove the leadership as it pursues a foreign policy prioritizing the Western Hemisphere.
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What To Know
Trump told reporters at the Machine Shed restaurant in Urbandale, Iowa, on Tuesday that Cuba was failing as it was no longer getting the oil it used to from Venezuela. He did not specify further, but his comments came weeks after Cuba’s key ally and trading partner Venezuela was roiled by an operation Trump had ordered to remove Maduro.
Until last month, around a third of Cuba’s oil came from Venezuela, according to the Financial Times. Even more, 44 percent, came from Mexico, which has also halted shipments amid rhetoric from Trump seeking to isolate the communist-ruled island.
Carlos de Cespedes, Cuba’s ambassador to Colombia, told Al Jazeera the U.S. was guilty of “international piracy” over its blockade of Venezuelan oil.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is of Cuban descent, has described the government in Havana as a “huge problem." After Maduro’s abduction, Trump urged Cuba to make a deal “before it is too late,” without specifying what kind of agreement he meant.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said this month that the U.S. had no moral authority to force a deal on Cuba. Politico reported that the blockade of oil imports to Cuba could be part of a push to drive leadership change in the Caribbean country, which is facing fuel shortages.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump said in Iowa on Tuesday: “Cuba will be failing pretty soon. Cuba is really a nation that's very close to failing.”
Carlos de Cespedes, Cuba’s ambassador to Colombia, told Al Jazeera: “The U.S. is carrying out international piracy in the Caribbean Sea.”
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said on X on January 12: “No one dictates what we do.”
What Happens Next
A report in The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed officials, said that the Trump administration aims to remove Cuba’s leadership and is seeking government insiders in Havana to “push out the Communist regime."
While this has not been independently confirmed, there will be anticipation over Trump’s future rhetoric toward Cuba and the impact of a worsening economic situation on the island.
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