US President Donald Trump on Monday repeated his assertion that Washington “may stop by Cuba” after it is “finished with” the ongoing war in Iran, prompting concern that US military pressure could widen beyond the Middle East.
Speaking to reporters outside the Oval Office, Trump described Cuba as a “failing nation” and said it had been “horribly run for many years” under longtime communist ruler Fidel Castro.
He also claimed that Cuban Americans had been “treated very badly,” alleging that some had relatives who were killed or beaten.
Trump did not elaborate on what he meant by saying the United States might “stop by” Cuba, leaving it unclear whether he was hinting at the threat of military force.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel responded defiantly over the weekend, warning Washington against any move toward direct confrontation.
In an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, Díaz-Canel said there would be “no justification” for a US attack, including what he described as a “surgical operation” or an attempt to remove Cuba’s leadership.
“If that happens, there’ll be fighting and there’ll be a struggle and we’ll defend ourselves,” Díaz-Canel said.
He also said he had “no fear” and was ready to give his life for the revolution.
The confrontation comes as the US is already engaged in a war with Iran. Any further escalation could unsettle Latin America, where many governments have long opposed US intervention in Cuba.
For the nearly 11 million people still living on the island, the stakes are high. More than six decades after the 1959 revolution, Cuba’s political system is confronting one of its gravest tests yet, squeezed by economic hardship, emigration, and the renewed possibility of direct confrontation with the US.