The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, reinforced his confidence on Wednesday that the conversations between Washington and Havana will lead to "a good outcome" for the Cubans, during a televised cabinet meeting at the White House presided over by President Donald Trump.
The statements were made after Trump asked Rubio for an update on the situation in Cuba, according to the agency EFE.
"They said, 'We will talk to them, we will work on this; we want something good for the Cuban people and, hopefully, there will be a positive outcome for them. There has to be one,'" stated Rubio before the cabinet.
The Secretary of State was emphatic in his diagnosis of the situation on the island, stating that Cuba is “in a great problem” because, he said, it is run by “a bunch of incompetent communists”.
“Being a communist is bad; being an incompetent communist is the worst,” he expressed.
Rubio also pointed to GAESA, the Cuban military conglomerate, as the main obstacle for economic wealth to reach the population, stating that Cuba has been seized by “this company called GAESA,” which “basically controls 70% of the economy.”
"None of that money will help the Cuban people. None," he stated.
The Secretary of State also framed the conversations with Cuba in terms of national security, recalling the geographical proximity of the island to the United States.
"It is 90 miles from our shores, and having a failed state 90 miles from our shores is a threat to the national security of the United States," he stated.
Rubio concluded his remarks by reiterating that Washington will continue to work on the issue and emphasized once again that he wants “something good for the Cuban people,” in the hope that there will be “a good outcome” because, as he stressed, “there has to be one.”
Rubio's words this Wednesday echo the language he had used earlier in May when he described the regime as "incompetent communists" during a press conference from the White House and stated that "the only thing worse than a communist is an incompetent communist."
The diplomatic context is tense. The day before, Cuba accused the United States before the UN Security Council of committing an "act of war and genocide" through the energy blockade, although at the same time it declared its willingness to negotiate.
La administración Trump ha intensificado la presión sobre La Habana a lo largo de 2026: desde enerohas imposed more than 240 sanctions contra el régimen e interceptado al menos siete tanqueros con combustible destinado a la isla.
On May 7, the administration announced direct sanctions against GAESA and set a deadline of June 5 for foreign companies and financial institutions to sever ties with the conglomerate, under the threat of secondary sanctions.
For his part, the Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel has warned that if Washington conditions any agreement on a regime change, "there is no possible negotiation," and he has acknowledged that he has not spoken directly with Rubio.
In March 2026, Trump declared that it would be an "honor" to free Cuba and that he could "take it or liberate it," describing the island as "a very weakened nation."
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