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Miguel Díaz-Canel stated in an interview given yesterday to Newsweek -the first with a U.S. media outlet since 2023- that "I am not concerned about my personal safety" in light of the increasing pressure from the Trump administration, dismissing any comparison to Nicolás Maduro's situation in Venezuela.
Díaz-Canel argued that Cuba operates on a monolithic unity, an ideological cohesion, and a revolutionary discipline in which the people act and safeguard security.
"And when this happens, betrayal becomes extremely difficult," the Cuban leader stated from the Presidential Palace in Havana.
He also denied the possibility of a parallel agreement that undermines the constitutional order.
"The direction of the Cuban state, the Party, and the Revolution is collective. And decisions are made collaboratively," he said.
His words sound like bravado in light of the Venezuelan precedent, which he knows better than anyone.
On January 3, 2026, the United States Delta Force carried out Operation Absolute Resolution in Caracas: approximately 200 soldiers in 150 aircraft captured Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores within hours. Maduro's security ring - which included Cuban personnel at its most sensitive levels - completely collapsed in the face of the operation.
Now, in response to the direct question from Newsweek about whether he is concerned about the methods of the Trump administration, Díaz-Canel rejected the parallel: "I do not believe that comparisons with what has happened in other countries are appropriate. It would be ignoring the history of the Cuban Revolution and the history of our people, it would be ignoring the strength of our institutions, and it would be ignoring our own unity."
Díaz-Canel's personal protection falls under the Personal Security Directorate of MININT, a structure consisting of hundreds or a few thousand agents selected for political loyalty and designed for internal threats, rather than for high-precision foreign military operations.
In the capture of Maduro, 32 military personnel and Cuban agents from the FAR and MININT were killed, along with 24 Venezuelan officers.
Díaz-Canel himself acknowledged those deaths on January 5 via Facebook and declared a national mourning. On March 21, he attempted to reframe the defeat as a heroic feat, claiming that the 32 Cubans "held back" the Delta Force. The reality is that Maduro was captured regardless.
In response to the new challenge posed by the Cuban dictator, Washington's reply was striking. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, when asked about the statements made by the Cuban leader, responded with a single phrase: "I don't think much about what he has to say".
The irony is that the leader used exactly that same expression in the same interview to refer to Trump, which summarizes the level of credibility that Washington gives to his statements.
The interview takes place at a time of heightened tension between Cuba and the United States in decades. Trump signed Executive Order 14380 in January, declaring the Cuban regime an extraordinary and unusual threat to U.S. national security and blocking oil shipments to the island, which has led to blackouts lasting up to 20 hours a day and a shortage of medications.
On March 27, Trump stated in Miami Beach: "Cuba is next, but pretend I didn’t say that", although on March 13 he had ruled out a direct military intervention.
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