The United States Army Reserve is assessing whether it can provide military police units, medical personnel, engineers, and logistical capabilities within a timeframe of 90 to 120 days, amid planning that several U.S. officials have linked to Cuba.
The information was revealed this Friday by CBS News, which had access to an internal Army message and spoke with several U.S. officials on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
The revised document by the chain does not mention Cuba. However, the officials consulted assured that the request is part of a continuation of military planning related to the island.
CBS News emphasized that there is no indication in the document that military units have received deployment orders. It also does not specify how many personnel may be needed, where they would be sent, or what operation they would support.
The message, generated last week, requests subordinate leaders to report on the possible availability of six types of military formations that would fall under the authority of the United States Southern Command.
The documentation indicates that those capabilities may be required within "90-120 days" and set September 25 as the deadline for responding to the Army Reserve headquarters.
Among the consulted units is a combat sustainment support battalion, specialized in coordinating transportation, maintenance, fuel, and supplies, as well as an engineering battalion and an expeditionary command responsible for overseeing larger-scale logistical operations.
The document also includes a medical brigade, a surgical and advanced resuscitation unit capable of providing emergency surgery and trauma care close to the deployed forces, and a military police brigade, whose functions typically include security, detention, and other law enforcement tasks within the military context.
The Army Reserve did not respond to CBS News before the report was published.
When asked by the channel, a spokesperson for United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) declined to comment on potential movements or deployment timelines citing operational security reasons.
The spokesperson noted that Southern Command "continuously coordinates with the Joint Force to assess a variety of potential requirements" within its area of responsibility and in support of the missions assigned to it.
CBS News also reported that, earlier this year, U.S. forces conducted reconnaissance operations of the seabed and maritime access around Cuba, according to various members of the Armed Forces consulted by the network.
Separately, components of the U.S. airpower were then placed at a higher level of readiness and received instructions to preposition personnel in anticipation of a possible deployment. However, those plans were not carried out, according to the report.
The network indicated that it decided to withhold some details of the planning, considering that their publication could jeopardize U.S. military personnel.
The information available so far, therefore, points to planning and capacity evaluation activities, but it does not confirm that President Donald Trump or the Pentagon have authorized a military operation in Cuba or that there is currently a deployment order in place.
Additionally, the report comes after several weeks of increased U.S. military activity in the Caribbean and a hardening of rhetoric between Washington and Havana, although none of these circumstances, on their own, prove that the United States has decided to carry out an operation against Cuba.
At the beginning of the month, the littoral combat ships USS Billings (LCS-15) and USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul (LCS-21) arrived at the Guantanamo Naval Base.
The Navy indicated that the USS Billings was on a scheduled deployment in the Caribbean, while the Minneapolis-Saint Paul had departed from Mayport, Florida, on August 27 and was later set to participate in the UNITAS 2026 naval exercise off the coast of Peru.
A week later, on September 8, Southern Command released images of members of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit training at Camp Santiago, Puerto Rico.
SOUTHCOM described the practices as part of the necessary preparation to respond in the Western Hemisphere.
The unit, composed of more than 1,300 marines and sailors, had assumed its mission in the Caribbean on May 29.
During the previous months, more than 8,100 military personnel participated in exercises in Puerto Rico, according to figures released by the authorities of that territory.
From Havana, Miguel Díaz-Canel stated on September 11 that “the threat of aggression remains” and reiterated that preparation for defense continued to be a priority.
His statements were made during a visit to the defense area of Alamar Este, as part of the military activities carried out by Cuba in 2026.
Another background was revealed in the middle of the month when official photographs from an experiment by the Air Force Department showed Cuba and the Caribbean on the screens of several workstations used during tests of command and control systems with artificial intelligence.
The official information about that experiment, known as DASH, did not identify Cuba as a military target nor did it claim that an attack against the island was being simulated.
The images only confirm that Cuba and the Caribbean were part of the geographical environment displayed in several stations during the tests.
Political tension rose again on Tuesday, when Donald Trump stated before the United Nations General Assembly that his administration seeks a «fundamental change» in Cuba, labeled the country as an «absolutely failed state», and asserted that the Cuban government will «fall».
He also stated that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was engaging in discussions with Havana and assured that the United States would not allow foreign adversaries to establish a threatening presence near its territory.
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