The U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, emphasized this Friday that “Cubans succeed all over the world, except in Cuba,” while insisting that the island's economy cannot change without a transformation of the political system.
During an exchange with journalists in Washington, Rubio reiterated that the Cuban economic crisis has structural roots and is linked to the current political model on the island.
In this regard, Rubio lamented that Cubans can only thrive outside their country. "It's sad that the only place where Cubans cannot succeed is in Cuba. You see Cubans succeeding all over the world, except in Cuba," he pointed out.
According to the official, that reality will only change if profound transformations occur in the power structure of the island.
“We need to change the people in charge, we need to change the system that governs the country, and we need to change the economic model,” he stated, explaining that, in his view, the Cuban economy cannot develop as long as it remains under the control of the Communist Party.
The head of U.S. diplomacy also questioned the viability of attracting international investments under those conditions.
"Who is going to invest billions of dollars in a communist country run by incompetent communists?" he asked.
In this context, he made a direct criticism of the Cuban leadership by stating that “the only thing worse than a communist is an incompetent communist.”
Rubio also rejected the reports published in the media suggesting that the administration of President Donald Trump might accept a deal limited to the economic sphere with the Cuban regime.
"Where do you get that perception from?" he responded to a journalist who mentioned reports in that regard, before asserting that many of those pieces of information are false.
The Secretary of State was emphatic in stating that any report about Cuba not coming from him or the president is baseless. "We are the only ones working on this," he asserted.
He also warned that the sources cited by some media outlets "know nothing" about the ongoing conversations. "I assure you they have no idea what's happening," he said.
The statements come amid a process of contacts between Washington and Havana, confirmed by both parties in mid-March.
President Donald Trump stated on March 17 that Cuba was talking with Rubio and that “we will do something very soon”.
On his part, the leader Miguel Díaz-Canel acknowledged the existence of dialogues with the United States, although he insisted that his position is "non-negotiable."
From Havana, the regime maintains that the ongoing reforms aim to update the economic model without changing the political system, combining centralized planning with market mechanisms and, under strict regulations, expanding the economic participation of Cubans living abroad.
Meanwhile, Rubio maintains his stance that the fundamental problem of Cuba is not situational but structural, and that the country will not be able to overcome its crisis without changes in the political leadership of the State.
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