The Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel stated that he does not fear the possibility of being captured or attacked by the United States, in a lengthy interview with journalist Mônica Bergamo published this Saturday in the Brazilian newspaper Folha de São Paulo.
The leader's response was a direct reference to the capture of Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces on January 3rd.
"If it reaches me, it reaches me, but it won't be with weakness, it won't be with cowardice, it will be fighting, fighting," declared Díaz-Canel emphatically, in what constitutes a new installment of his rhetoric of defiance against Washington.
The Cuban leader affirmed that this conviction is not recent, but rather a decision that, according to him, has been made for a long time and is strengthened by participation in the revolution. "I did this a long time ago, a long time ago, and it is a conviction that grows with you in life, in the same measure that you participate in the revolution and come to understand the history of the revolution. If you are determined to give your life for the cause, what is there to be afraid of?" he stated.
He also extended that stance to his closest circle: "When you have that attitude toward life, as my wife does, we have nothing to fear; the decision has already been made."
The backdrop of these words is the operation in which 32 Cuban soldiers lost their lives who were part of Maduro's security ring in Caracas, Venezuela, an event that the Havana regime officially acknowledged on January 4 and which led to two days of national mourning.
Since then, Díaz-Canel has reiterated variations of the same message in different interviews and forums. In April, he declared to NBC: "I am not afraid. I am willing to give my life for the revolution." In June, in an interview with elDiario.es, he was more concise: "We do not fear war." And a day later, during an event in the Cuban capital, he warned that "there will be a determined and firm fight" if they attempt to enter the country.
Analysts and critical media interpret this chain of statements as a defensive response to the fear that Maduro's downfall might trigger a similar effect on the Cuban regime, rather than as a genuine display of strength.
In a recent interview with Folha de São Paulo, Díaz-Canel took the opportunity to praise Cuba's "solidarity" with Brazil through the medical program, recalling that over 11,000 Cuban doctors worked in communities in that country that had never received medical attention.
"When a reactionary right-wing government expelled Cuban doctors from Brazil, more than 11,000 of them who went to the most remote places, to areas where no doctor had ever been, the Brazilian people felt that loss," he stated, referring to the government of Jair Bolsonaro.
What Díaz-Canel omitted is that it was his own government that canceled the Mais Médicos agreement in November 2018, withdrawing Cuban doctors from Brazil in response to statements made by then-elect president Bolsonaro, which questioned the conditions of the program.
The leader concluded this part of the interview with a statement about his personal mission: "The time we have left in our lives will be devoted body and soul to this people, to this revolution, to seeking the prosperity we want for our nation."
Meanwhile, the population suffers from power outages of up to 40 continuous hours, as well as water shortages, food scarcity, lack of medicine, and other essential goods, and the country has been without regular fuel supply for seven months.
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