While the Cuban regime was deploying the National Defense Day across the country this Saturday, with military exercises involving civilians, reservists, and territorial militias, U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth shared on social media a video of American marines training aboard a warship.
The contrast did not go unnoticed. In Cuba, official media and institutional accounts of the Ministry of Revolutionary Armed Forces disseminated images of citizens armed with rifles, shooting drills in rural areas, and military training activities under the doctrine of the so-called "war of the entire people," presented by the government as a response to an alleged external threat.
That same day, Hegseth posted on his account a video accompanied by the message: "Power. Freedom. Warriors.", showing dozens of marines doing push-ups and coordinated maneuvers on deck as part of a professional military training.
The material shared by the U.S. official was not recorded recently. The video originally appeared on the TikTok account @milothechicken on November 9, 2025, with the description: “Reflecting on last year's moments aboard ship during the Marine Corps birthday. Honored to have had a visit from our Sergeant Major Ruiz”. Nevertheless, its republication coincided with the military mobilization called by Havana.
On the Island, authorities assured that from now on, every Saturday will be a permanent space for military, political, and ideological preparation, amid an escalating confrontational rhetoric with the United States following the capture of Venezuelan ruler Nicolás Maduro and President Donald Trump's recent statements about the collapse of the Cuban regime.
The images released from Cuba showed makeshift training sessions, Soviet-made rifles, and the participation of civilians of all ages, including young people and women, in exercises presented as territorial defense.
The visual and symbolic contrast between the two scenarios —civil militias in a country battered by economic crisis versus professional forces training on a state-of-the-art military ship— has sparked discussions both on and off the Island, at a time when the Cuban government insists on a narrative of resistance while the population grapples with blackouts, shortages, and deteriorating living conditions.
So far, neither Hegseth nor the U.S. Department of Defense have made any direct reference to National Defense Day in Cuba, although the timing has reinforced the perception of two radically different military realities in the current climate of regional tension.
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