Trump Signals Potential ‘Friendly Takeover’ of Cuba in White House Remarks
President Donald Trump raised the prospect of a “friendly takeover” of Cuba during remarks at the White House on Friday, stating that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was handling the issue at a “very high level.”
The president described the Cuban government as a failing nation in need of change, adding that he had been hearing about its struggles since childhood. “They have no money,” Trump said as he departed for a trip to Texas, “they have no oil, they have no food. And it’s really right now a nation in deep trouble and they want our help.”
The comments followed an incident where Cuban forces killed four exiles and wounded six others who sailed into Cuban waters aboard a Florida-registered speedboat and opened fire on a patrol vessel. U.S. officials have blocked virtually all oil shipments to Cuba, intensifying economic pressure on the island. Last month, U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, removing a key Cuban ally from power.
Secretary Rubio has recently criticized Cuba’s government, calling its status quo unsustainable and stating it needed “dramatic” change. The Cuban government has denied engaging in high-level talks with the United States but has not outright rejected reports of informal discussions with Raul Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, the grandson of former Cuban President Raúl Castro. Reports indicate that U.S. officials close to Rubio met with the Cuban official on the sidelines of a regional conference in St. Kitts and Nevis.
