From the same podium where congress members from South Florida called for a stronger blow against Havana, Miami-Dade Commissioner Natalie Milian Orbis warned that the communist regime is facing unprecedented pressure and stated that the time has come to enforce the law without hesitation.
The statements were made at the headquarters of the Cuban Democratic Directorate in Miami during a press conference featuring Congress members Carlos Giménez and Mario Díaz-Balart, alongside exile organizations, activists, and local officials.
The meeting served to announce new demands directed at President Donald Trump, including a complete suspension of flights to Cuba and the cessation of remittances, measures conceived as part of a strategy to economically suffocate the government of Havana.
In that context, Milian Orbis was even more direct. “To the communist dictators in Cuba: Miami-Dade is closed for business. Your time is up. The Cuban people have waited too long,” she stated, while acknowledging Trump for bringing the Cuban dictatorship "to the brink of collapse."
The commissioner stated that the pressure is already yielding visible results. As an example, she cited the recent public attacks by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez against enforcement actions in the United States and his defense of companies that maintain commercial ties with the regime. For Milian Orbis, this reaction confirms that the strategy is working and that it has struck sensitive nerves within the power structure on the island.
His words did not remain in the rhetorical realm. From the Miami-Dade County Commission, he advocated for a unanimously approved resolution, supported by both Democrats and Republicans, that calls for the immediate suspension of licenses related to Cuba while comprehensive federal audits are conducted. The goal, as he explained, is to ensure that no funds, goods, or services end up benefiting the regime or companies controlled by the military conglomerate GAESA.
"This is not a partisan issue. It is a moral issue," he insisted, denouncing that licenses intended for humanitarian purposes have been stretched beyond their original intent, allowing the export of vehicles, heavy machinery, and equipment that could have dual uses. "Humanitarian aid should reach the Cuban people, but trade that enriches a dictatorship is not humanitarian," he emphasized.
Milian Orbis also referred to recent findings from the Miami-Dade Tax Collector, Dariel Fernández, which indicate serious gaps in the control mechanisms for authorized exports to Cuba. He stated that in some cases, there would be no reliable checks on the end use of the goods or effective safeguards to prevent their diversion to military structures of the regime.
The commissioner also revealed that only one local company would be authorized to export nearly one billion dollars in vehicles, trucks, and machinery to the island. “With nothing more than a coat of green paint, they can become tools of oppression,” she warned, linking her message to the sentiments of many Cubans who fled the island and today watch with indignation as the economic foundations of the system that forced them to leave are being rebuilt from exile.
The tone of the event reflected an unprecedented coordination between local and federal figures, something that Milian Orbis highlighted while thanking Congress members Carlos Giménez, Mario Díaz-Balart, and María Elvira Salazar for their support, as well as the exile organizations present. "What you are hearing today is determination and commitment," he concluded.
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