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Rick de la Torre, former CIA operations officer and former station chief in Caracas, stated in an interview with the channel WPLG Local 10 that the Cuban regime is facing "more pressure than at any other time in its history," in the context marked by the collapse of Venezuelan oil subsidies and new U.S. sanctions against the military conglomerate GAESA.
De la Torre participated in the Hemispheric Security Conference organized by Florida International University (FIU) and shared his statements on social media this Monday, directly linking the Cuban crisis to the capture of Nicolás Maduro on January 3, 2026, in the "Operation Absolute Resolution."
"Cuba's economy has been a failure for six or seven decades. There is nothing new there. What happened, unfortunately, was that after the fall of the Soviet Union, the Cuban regime managed to survive long enough to extend its influence into Venezuela," the former analyst explained.
According to De la Torre, subsidized Venezuelan oil —between 25,000 and 30,000 barrels per day— was the main economic support for the regime for years. With that flow interrupted, what remains is, in his words, "the exposure of a corrupt system that doesn't work."
The former official was emphatic in stating that the sanctions do not harm the Cuban people, but rather highlight the damage that the regime itself has inflicted: "All they have done is keep the Cuban people in check and prolong their pain and suffering. Now we arrive and say: something has to give. Something has to change. The statu quo cannot continue."
The analysis by De la Torre aligns with the announcement made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on May 7 regarding new sanctions against GAESA, the military conglomerate that controls between 40% and 70% of the Cuban formal economy and holds illicit assets estimated between 18,000 and 20,000 million dollars.
Rubio described GAESA as a company "created by generals in Cuba that has generated billions of dollars in revenue, none of which benefits the Cuban people. Not a cent."
The sanctions stem from an executive order signed by President Trump on May 1, granting foreign companies a deadline of June 5, 2026 to sever ties with the conglomerate, under the threat of secondary sanctions.
The Canadian company Sherritt International has already suspended all its operations in Cuba, and its shares dropped by 30% following the announcement.
Regarding the regime's leaders, De la Torre left no room for doubt: "The octogenarians of a military junta that governs Cuba: it is time for them to relinquish power. It truly is."
However, he acknowledged that they will not do it on their own accord: "I don't see them doing it voluntarily. No. I believe that the pressure needs to continue to increase."
The former analyst noted that this pressure must be multifaceted—both economic and diplomatic—and warned Cuban leaders that hoarding billions stolen from the people in foreign bank accounts is meaningless if no one opens their doors to them.
The CEPAL projects a 6.5% decline in Cuba's GDP for 2026, the worst in Latin America, with a cumulative contraction of 23% since 2019 and power outages of up to 25 hours a day in several regions.
De la Torre concluded the interview with a statement of hope: "Not only do I hope to see a free Cuba, I hope to witness the end of Marxism and communism in our hemisphere. This is the closest opportunity we have had in a long time, and I believe we can achieve it."
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