MIAMI, Fla., March 8 — U.S. President Donald Trump said the Cuban government is currently negotiating with his administration, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as mounting economic pressure pushes Havana toward potential talks with Washington.
Speaking Saturday at the “Shield of the Americas” summit in Miami, Trump said Cuba is “at the end of the line” following the loss of oil shipments from Venezuela after the U.S. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
“As we achieve a historic transformation in Venezuela, we’re also looking forward to the great change that will soon be coming to Cuba,” Trump said. “They have no money. They have no oil. They have a bad philosophy. They have a bad regime that’s been bad for a long time.”
Trump said Cuban officials are negotiating directly with him, Rubio, and other members of his administration, adding that an agreement with Havana could be reached “very easily.”
The remarks come after months of increasing U.S. pressure on Cuba, which has relied heavily on Venezuelan oil shipments for years.
The collapse of that support has worsened an already severe economic crisis on the island, contributing to fuel shortages, blackouts, and disruptions to transportation and daily life for its nearly 11 million residents.
Trump has urged Cuban leaders since early this year to reach an agreement with Washington. The push intensified following Maduro’s capture, which cut off a critical source of energy and financial support for Havana.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez has rejected the pressure, previously declaring that Cuba is prepared to defend the country “to the last drop of blood” and blaming external factors for the nation’s economic hardships.
Trump has also floated the possibility of a “friendly takeover of Cuba” by the United States, suggesting that the island’s economic crisis could lead to significant political change.
Meanwhile, some U.S. lawmakers have questioned whether Cuba could become another focus of American foreign policy as the United States remains engaged in a broader geopolitical confrontation with Iran.
During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing earlier this year, Rubio said the United States would welcome political change in Cuba, noting that the 1996 Helms–Burton Act requires a democratic transition on the island before the U.S. can fully normalize relations with Havana.
“The regime changing there would be of great benefit to the United States,” Rubio said.
