Mike Johnson, president of the United States House of Representatives, dismissed military intervention in Cuba this Tuesday, stating that he sees no "need" or "desire" to send troops to the island and that change in the country will occur organically.
Johnson's statements address questions about whether he would support military action in Cuba and whether the White House should seek Congress's authorization for it. The Republican leader was emphatic: "I don't think there's a need. I don't believe there's an appetite for boots on the ground in Cuba. I think some of this happens organically."
Johnson based his stance on the state of the Cuban regime. "I believe that the system is in the process of collapsing because it is a socialist regime, and those experiments never work," he stated, adding that "if a change occurs there, I don't think we will need American troops, I don’t think so."
The president of the Chamber also mentioned the initiative "Shield of the Americas" promoted by Trump as the multilateral framework to ensure hemispheric security against narco-terrorists, noting that Cuba will be a central topic of this agenda.
Johnson's statements come just days after President Donald Trump claimed during the Summit of the Americas held in Miami this past Saturday and Sunday that Cuba "will fall very soon" and that the regime is in its final moments. "Cuba is at the end of the line. They have no money. They have no oil," Trump said, recalling that they previously received support from Venezuela.
At that same summit, Trump revealed that his administration is maintaining active negotiations with Havana through Secretary of State Marco Rubio. "They want to negotiate and are negotiating with Marco [Rubio] and me," he stated, adding that "an agreement with Cuba would be very easy," although he warned that "the takeover can be friendly, or it may not be".
The debate over a possible military action in Cuba intensified following the incident on February 25 in Cuban waters, when Cuban border guards intercepted a boat registered in Florida in the waters off Villa Clara, resulting in four Cubans residing in the United States dead and six injured. The regime described the event as a "terrorist infiltration," a claim that the Cuban exile community in Miami questioned.
In this context, the U.S. maintains a significant naval presence in the Caribbean as part of the Operation Southern Shield, which includes the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, approximately 12,000 personnel, and an estimated cost of 3 billion dollars. Johnson's stance contrasts with that of some Republican senators like Lindsey Graham, who has taken a more aggressive tone regarding Cuba.
The Cuban economy has experienced a 15% decline since 2020, with a 5% drop occurring in just 2025, amidst power outages lasting more than 20 hours daily and a fuel crisis that has even led to airport closures.
Complete transcript of Mike Johnson's statements regarding a possible military intervention in Cuba
Last question, thank you, sir. Would you support a military action by the United States in Cuba? Should the White House seek Congressional approval? This is a new topic that everyone has been discussing today.
Look, I don't think there is a need. I don't believe there's a desire to put boots on the ground in Cuba. I think some of this happens organically.
I believe the system is in the process of collapsing because it is a socialist regime, and those experiments never work.
Although they are illegal, listen: if there is a change of regime there, I don't think we will need U.S. troops there. I don't believe so.
I believe that will happen, and they will seek to change things. And perhaps they will drive vehicles —you know— that are not manufactured before 1952 very soon.
And that would be great. Look, they are close neighbors, just 90 miles from Key West. I mean, we are a close neighbor. It's in our neighborhood, in the hemisphere.
The president, due to his strong leadership, united security for the Americas with a new initiative to combat narco-terrorists and ensure that we are safe in our hemisphere.
And there are so many countries committed to that. Cuba will be a major topic of discussion, and I hope it goes well.
But should we send a bunch of marines back there? I don't think there's an assessment of that to answer the question.
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