The United States is reportedly intensifying its pressure campaign against Cuba, with the Justice Department preparing to seek an indictment against Raúl Castro, the island nation’s former leader.
This potential criminal charge, requiring grand jury approval, risks significantly escalating tensions with Havana.
The increased pressure began after military action in Venezuela earlier this year, which resulted in the capture of President Nicolás Maduro.
This development unfolds as the U.S. navigates an uneasy ceasefire in its ongoing conflict with Iran.
Here’s a closer look at developments over the year between Cuba and the U.S.
A day after the operation in Venezuela that captured Maduro, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared Cuba’s government was “in a lot of trouble,” as the president renewed calls for an American takeover of the Danish territory of Greenland.
Trump fired off a warning to the government of Cuba as the close ally of Venezuela braced for potential unrest after Maduro was deposed. Trump called for the Cuban government “to make a deal BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.”
Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, responded, “Those who turn everything into a business, even human lives, have no moral authority to point the finger at Cuba in any way, absolutely in any way.”
Trump signed an executive order to impose a tariff on any goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba, a move that could further cripple the island.
A day before the war in Iran began, Trumpsaid the U.S. was in talks with Havana and raised the possibility of a “friendly takeover of Cuba,” though he didn’t offer any details.
Trump said Rubio was in discussions with Cuban leaders “at a very high level.”
Trump didn’t clarify his comments but seemed to indicate that the situation with Cuba, among Washington’s bitterest adversaries for decades, was coming to a critical point.
Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, the grandson of Castro known as “Raúlito,” secretly met with Rubio on the sidelines of a Caribbean Community summit in St. Kitts in February.
Díaz-Canelsaid Cuba and the U.S. held talks, marking the first time the Caribbean country confirmed widespread speculation about discussions with the Trump administration amid an energy crisis.
He said the talks “were aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences between our two nations. International factors facilitated these exchanges.”
A sanctioned Russian oil tanker arrived in Cuba, the first time in three months fuel reached the island.
Diaz-Canel said he would not resign.
Díaz-Canel said in an interview that he would not step down and that the U.S. has no valid reason to carry out a military attack against the island or to attempt to depose him.
Speaking in the interview on NBC’s Meet the Press, the president said an invasion of Cuba would be costly and affect regional security.
Díaz-Canel spoke during a rally that drew hundreds of people to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the declaration of the Cuban Revolution’s socialist essence.
“The moment is extremely challenging and calls upon us once again, as on April 16, 1961, to be ready to confront serious threats, including military aggression. We do not want it, but it is our duty to prepare to avoid it and, if it becomes inevitable, to defeat it,” Díaz-Canel said.
News emerged that an American delegation recently met with Cuban government officials, marking a renewed diplomatic push. This was at least the third meeting with Rodríguez Castro.
A senior State Department official met with Rodríguez Castro earlier in the month, according to a department official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.
The official did not say who from the U.S. met with Rodríguez Castro, whose grandfather is believed to play an influential role in the Cuban government despite not holding an official post. A second U.S. official said Rubio was not part of the delegation that visited Havana.
A Cuban diplomat speaking at the United Nations said Havana will not abide by any American “ultimatums” to release political prisoners as part of new talks.
