The President of the United States, Donald Trump, stated this Friday that his administration is focused on Cuba and assured that Havana "is eager to reach an agreement," while he hinted that he might assign the issue to his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio.
“They want to reach an agreement, so I’m going to put Marco (Rubio) there and we’ll see how it works. We are very focused on this right now. We have a lot of time, but Cuba is ready after 50 years,” he stated in a phone interview with journalist Dana Bash from CNN.
During that conversation, Trump also stated that "Cuba will fall very soon" and brought up the issue while discussing what he described as the military successes of his administration in the current mandate.
The president addressed the topic seemingly spontaneously and emphasized that the Cuban regime would be interested in negotiating with Washington.
"Cuba will fall very soon, by the way, not related (to the topic under discussion), but Cuba will also fall. They are eager to reach an agreement,” he said.
The president insisted that he has been observing the situation in Cuba for decades and suggested that the current moment could present an opportunity for change on the Island.
"I have been observing him for 50 years, and it has fallen into my hands because of my fault; it has fallen, but still, it has fallen into my hands. And we are doing very well," he added, according to the submitted document.
The mention of Rubio took a central place in his remarks. Trump suggested that the Secretary of State would be responsible for dealing with Cuba if the White House decides to move in that direction.
In the material, that idea is summarized as follows: “I’m going to send Marco there, we’ll see how it goes!”, along with the statement that Rubio “has been waiting for Cuba.”
The statements came just one day after Trump again mentioned Cuba at the White House.
According to the provided text, on Wednesday the leader hinted that the matter holds a significant place on his government's agenda and stated that it was only a “matter of time” before Cuban Americans could return to their country of origin, as a possible consequence of the political changes he envisions for the Island.
In that earlier intervention, Trump again referred to Rubio while discussing the foreign policy strategy of his administration.
“He is doing a job, and the next one will be: we want to take care of that special Cuba,” he said about the Secretary of State. He then added: “He is waiting. But he says, ‘Let’s finish this first.’ We could do it all at once, but bad things happen.”
The leader explained that his government prefers to move forward gradually in international policy.
"If we look at countries over the years, we see that if we do everything too quickly, bad things happen. We will not allow anything bad to happen to this country," he asserted, always according to the contents of the document.
These statements are made against a backdrop of significant tensions in U.S. foreign policy and amid the economic and social crisis currently facing Cuba, characterized—according to the text—by food shortages, prolonged blackouts, and an unprecedented wave of migration.
During his first term, Trump implemented a hardline policy towards the Cuban government, reversing much of the thaw initiated by Barack Obama.
His administration imposed new economic sanctions, restricted travel and remittances, and re-listed Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism.
Since then, the bilateral relationship has been marked by political confrontation. Washington has continued to denounce human rights violations on the Island, while the Cuban government accuses the United States of maintaining an economic pressure policy aimed at forcing a change in the system.
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