The U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, referred to the Cuban regime as "incompetent communists" this Wednesday, but he opened the door to dialogue during a cabinet meeting at the White House chaired by President Donald Trump, who requested an update on the situation on the island.
"We will talk to them, we will work on it; we want something good for the Cuban people and, hopefully, there will be a good outcome for them. There has to be," stated the official, who has been working to keep the channels of communication open with Havana.
“Cuba is in big trouble because, unfortunately for them, it is run by a bunch of incompetent communists. And being a communist is bad; being an incompetent communist is like the worst,” Rubio stated before the cabinet.
The Secretary of State directly pointed to GAESA, the military-business conglomerate of the regime, as the main obstacle to the well-being of the Cuban people: "The country has been taken over by this company called GAESA, which essentially controls 70% of the economy. None of the money from that company is going to help the Cuban people. None."
The secretary framed the Cuban issue as a matter of U.S. national security: "It's 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."
The statements made this Wednesday come just six days after Rubio admitted that he does not see any progress in the talks with Havana. On May 21, the secretary acknowledged to the press: "Honestly, I don't see much progress," and described Cuba as a "failed state" whose economic system "is broken and cannot be fixed with the current political system."
In that same appearance, Rubio revealed that the U.S. ambassador had met with Cuban officials, that the CIA director visited the island, and that there is constant communication from the State Department, although with no concrete results. He also noted that GAESA holds $18 billion in assets, with "not a single cent going to the state budget or to help the Cuban people."
The diplomatic context is under maximum pressure. The Trump administration has imposed over 240 sanctions against Cuba since January 2026, including direct sanctions against GAESA and its president, Brigadier General Ania Guillermina Lastres Morera, announced on May 7.
On that same day, June 5 was set as the deadline for foreign companies and financial institutions to sever ties with the military conglomerate, under the threat of secondary sanctions.
The U.S. has also intercepted at least seven tankers carrying fuel intended for Cuba, leading to an 80-90% drop in energy imports and blackouts of up to 25 hours a day in over 55% of the territory.
One day before Rubio's statements, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez accused Washington at the UN Security Council of committing an "act of war and genocide" through the energy blockade, although he simultaneously declared his willingness to negotiate. For his part, Díaz-Canel has warned that if Washington conditions any agreement on a regime change, "there is no possible negotiation."
The June 5 deadline for foreign companies to sever ties with GAESA will make the coming days a crucial moment to gauge the true extent of U.S. pressure on the regime.
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