Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned on Thursday that the Cuban regime will no longer be able to employ its usual delaying tactics against Washington, describing Cuba as a "failed state" whose economic system "does not work and cannot be fixed with the current political system."
The statements were captured by C-SPAN at a press conference where Rubio candidly addressed the situation on the island, the pressure policy of the Trump administration, and the formal charges brought against Raúl Castro for the downing of civilian aircraft in 1996.
"What they have done all these years is buy time and wait for us," Rubio said. "They won't be able to wait for us or buy time. We are very serious. We are very focused."
The secretary acknowledged that there are open channels of communication with Havana, pointing out that the U.S. ambassador has recently met with Cuban officials and the CIA director visited the island a week ago. However, he dismissed the possibility that these contacts will lead to a short-term agreement.
"The president's preference is always for a negotiated and peaceful agreement. That remains our preference with Cuba. But to be honest, the likelihood of that happening with those currently in charge is not high."
Rubio directly linked the Cuban crisis to the national security of the United States, arguing that a systemic collapse on the island—which he deemed imminent—would impact Washington through migration crises and violence. "Cuba is 90 miles from our shores. If there is a systemic collapse in that country, which is where they are heading, we will be affected," he warned.
He also rejected the notion that U.S. policy amounts to an intervention for nation-building: "That's not it. We are addressing something directly related to the national security of the United States."
One of Rubio's strongest arguments pointed to the military conglomerate GAESA, which he accused of hoarding $18 billion in assets without transferring "a single cent" to the state budget or energy infrastructure. "They haven't spent a dime on fixing their energy production or electrical grid, even while receiving free Venezuelan oil. They have stolen the money and invested nothing in energy infrastructure," he stated, thus explaining the chronic blackouts that the island suffers.
In the same press conference, Rubio answered questions regarding the formal charges brought by a grand jury from the Southern District of Florida against Raúl Castro for the shooting down of two aircraft from Brothers to the Rescue on February 24, 1996, resulting in the deaths of Armando Alejandre Jr., Carlos Costa, Mario de la Peña, and Pablo Morales. The charges include conspiracy to kill American citizens, destruction of aircraft, and four counts of homicide.
"Raúl Castro openly admits and boasts about having given the order to shoot down civilian planes," said Rubio, emphasizing that the accusation originated from the grand jury and not from the Executive. When asked how they would bring Castro to the United States, the secretary was brief: "I'm not going to discuss how we would bring him here. Why would I tell the media what our plans are?"
The statements made this Thursday come a day after Rubio released a video in Spanish addressed to the Cuban people in honor of the 124th anniversary of the Republic, where he offered 100 million dollars in food and medicine to be distributed by the Catholic Church and proposed a "new relationship" between the United States and Cuba "directly with the people, not with GAESA."
Rubio concluded his message with a warning that encapsulates Washington's stance: "The future of Cuba belongs to the Cuban people in terms of how they are governed and what their system is. However, the threat to national security is something we are going to focus on one hundred percent, because that relates to America."
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