High-level US delegation visits Cuba as Trump ups pressure
By Jennifer Hansler, CNN
(CNN) — A senior US delegation met with Cuban government officials in Cuba as the Trump administration ramps up its efforts to pressure Havana into a deal as it continues to exert its economic chokehold on the island.
It was the one of the highest-level visits of US officials in roughly a decade and comes as President Donald Trump continues to raise the specter of potential military action. It also comes as Cuba’s economic crisis continues to deepen amid sharp restrictions, including on fuel, from the US administration. Cuba’s president, meanwhile, has made increasingly defiant calls to resist US military aggression in recent days.
The senior State Department delegation, which visited the island in recent weeks, stressed that time was running out for Havana “to make key US backed reforms before circumstances irreversibly worsen,” a US State Department official told CNN.
It was the first time a US government aircraft touched down in Cuba – other than at the US base in Guantanamo Bay – since 2016, when former President Barack Obama visited amid an effort to expand relations with Havana.
According to the State Department official, the US delegation stressed “Cuba’s need to make significant economic and governance reforms to enhance competitiveness, attract foreign investment, and allow private sector-led growth.”
They discussed a proposal to bring Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet to Cuba, as well as proposals to compensate US people and corporations “for confiscated assets and properties” – something that would likely be welcomed by the Cuban diaspora in the United States.
The delegation put forward demands that the Cuban government release political prisoners and increase “political freedoms” for the population, the State Department official said. They also expressed concerns “about foreign intelligence, military, and terror groups operating with Cuban governmental permission less than 100 miles from the American homeland,” the official said.
The official declined to provide details on the members of the delegation. They noted that one senior State Department official met separately with Raul Castro’s grandson during the visit.
On Monday, a top Cuban official confirmed that a meeting between Cuban and US delegations “was recently held” on the island.
Speaking to state media, Alejandro García del Toro described the meeting as “respectful and professional,” and said that “eliminating the energy blockade against the country was a top priority for our delegation.”
In later March, the Trump administration allowed a Russian-flagged oil tanker into Cuban waters, breaking the fuel blockade, saying: “They have to survive.” The White House afterward said this was “not a policy change.” Still, the overall blockade has significantly hamstrung the island.
Meanwhile, Trump has repeatedly suggested that the US could pursue military action against Havana, following what he has described as a significant military success against Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela.
“In January, our warriors flew straight into the heart of the Venezuelan capital, captured the outlaw dictator Nicolás Maduro and brought him to face American justice,” Trump said at an event Friday. “And pretty soon, this great strength will bring about a day 70 years and waiting. It’s called a new dawn for Cuba.”
Embattled Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, while commemorating the 65th anniversary of the victory by Cuban soldiers at the Bay of Pigs over CIA trained exile forces, Díaz-Canel vowed to “open fire” on any new US attempts to invade the island.
On Sunday, Díaz-Canel was shown on Cuban TV with other officials signing a declaration to never “negotiate the principles of the Cuban revolution.”
CNN’s Patrick Oppmann and Michael Rios contributed reporting.
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