Cuba condemns US escalation as military drills intensify, while Trump enforces oil embargo and accuses Havana of Venezuelan dependency.
Cuba Condemns US “Escalation” Amid Defense Drills
Cuba’s government “strongly condemns” new U.S. actions against the island, Roberto Morales Ojeda of the Communist Party Political Bureau stated on Saturday, January 31. He accused Washington of threatening regional and global security.
“Defensive actions are intensifying nationwide,” Morales wrote on social media. “The ‘War of the People’ is our strategic doctrine, and the words ‘capitulation’ and ‘defeat’ have been erased.” Photos showed President Miguel Diaz-Canel in military uniform beside soldiers and a rocket launcher.
Trump Imposes Oil Embargo, Warns of Humanitarian Crisis
President Donald Trump signed an order allowing the U.S. to impose tariffs on nations selling oil to Cuba. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum warned this could trigger a humanitarian crisis.
Trump dismissed concerns on Saturday, suggesting Cuba could avoid crisis by “making a deal” with the U.S.: “I think they will probably come to us and want to negotiate. Then Cuba will be free again,” he stated.
Trump Accuses Cuba of Venezuelan Dependency
“Americans will be generous if Cuba agrees to a deal with us,” Trump asserted. “They are in very bad shape. No money, no oil. They lived off Venezuelan money and oil, and now they have nothing.”
Reuters reported Venezuela was Cuba’s largest oil supplier last year, a trade that declined after the U.S. blocked Venezuelan oil shipments, even before the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
