The United States is rehearsing various response scenarios, including military ones, in case of destabilization in Cuba.
Cuba / © Associated Press
The administration of US President Donald Trump is preparing for a possible escalation of the situation in Cuba this summer.
This is reported by Axios, citing American officials.
According to the publication, US President Donald Trump has not yet sanctioned an invasion of Cuba and prefers a peaceful transition to a “free Cuba.”
At the same time, the administration continues to increase economic pressure on Havana through sanctions.
“The best way to describe it is ‘accelerationism.’ But we don’t want to destroy the regime yet. There’s a system to it. Everything is happening in stages,” said one senior administration official.
According to Axios, the White House’s current strategy also aims to buy time for Trump, who is currently focused on negotiations with Iran, and plans to pay more attention to Cuba afterward.
“Iran hasn’t surrendered yet, and the president is in no hurry. Trump wants to exhaust all possible levers of influence. But at the moment, there aren’t as many as before,” said another administration representative.
Another senior official added:
“We have quite a broad arsenal of tools, especially regarding sanctions and their enforcement. And that’s not all.”
The article notes that the US administration seeks to eliminate the source of anti-American influence and Marxist agitation in Latin America, which has existed since the revolution of Fidel and Raul Castro in 1959.
To increase pressure on Cuba, Washington initially focused on Venezuela and its leader Nicolas Maduro, who had long supported the Cuban economy with oil supplies.
Axios reminds that Maduro, who was indicted by the US in 2020 for “narco-terrorism,” was detained during a raid by US forces on January 3. After that, supplies of cheap oil to Cuba ceased, causing a new economic crisis.
“The US blames Cuba for its economic woes. Cuba blames the US,” the publication notes.
It is also reported that last month, the US Southern Command conducted interagency “tabletop” exercises on possible military actions in Cuba.
“All options are being considered, but no invasion is planned or imminent. When the US President gives the order, we will be ready for anything,” said a US official.
According to another source, during the exercises, officials discussed possible mass unrest in Cuba, the country’s possession of drones, and the risks of social explosion due to problems with electricity and food.
“It’s going to be hot. People won’t have electricity. Food spoils without refrigerators. People get angry. They might take to the streets. And what will happen then? I can’t imagine the president not taking any action in case of repression,” the source said.
Meanwhile, one of Trump’s advisors emphasized that the president is not interested in prolonged military intervention.
“The president doesn’t want ground troops to stay there longer than 48 hours. It could turn into a quagmire. The situation could become complicated,” he said.
One of the White House advisors characterized the current strategy towards Cuba as typical Trump style.
“It’s pressure, observe the reaction, increase the pressure, observe the reaction, increase the pressure,” the advisor noted.
Earlier, it was reported that the US had intensified reconnaissance flights near Cuba, demonstratively documenting the movement of military aircraft and drones.
We previously reported that the US Department of Justice had indicted former Cuban President Raul Castro, 94, in connection with the downing of civilian airliners in 1996, which carried critics of the communist state.
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