Cuba's deputy foreign minister said the island's military is preparing for possible U.S. aggression and rejected any negotiation over Cuba's political system, as tensions rose after President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio sharpened public warnings while Cuba struggled through a worsening power and fuel crisis.
Carlos Fernandez de Cossio said in a Sunday interview on NBC News' "Meet the Press" that Cuba would be "naive" not to consider the possibility of conflict, though he added Havana hoped it would not happen and saw "no justification" for it.
He also said the makeup of Cuba's government was not up for negotiation, pushing back against U.S. pressure tied to ongoing contacts between the two countries.
The comments followed a burst of threats from Washington.
Reuters reported March 16 that Trump said talks with Cuba were underway and that action remained possible.
Trump said he would have the "honor" of "taking Cuba in some form" and added, "I can do anything I want with it." Rubio has also said Cuba's leadership needs "new people in charge."
The standoff has unfolded alongside a severe energy emergency on the island.
The White House said Jan. 29 that Trump signed an executive order establishing a process to impose tariffs on goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba.
Cuba's national grid collapsed again on Saturday, March 21, the third nationwide outage this month.
Havana says U.S. pressure on fuel suppliers has worsened the crisis, while U.S. officials have argued Cuba's economic system and aging infrastructure are major causes.
At the same time, the public rhetoric has gone further than the U.S. military's stated posture.
On March 19, Gen. Francis Donovan, the head of U.S. Southern Command, told lawmakers the U.S. military is not preparing for an invasion or takeover of Cuba.
However, it is prepared to protect the U.S. Embassy in Havana, defend Guantanamo Bay, and respond to a mass migration contingency.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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