US warns Cuba is a national security threat as Trump ramps up pressure

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Fears are growing that Donald Trump may be preparing for military action in Cuba as Washington continues to escalate rhetoric against the island's communist government.

Trump's Escalating Threats

Donald Trump dramatically turned up the heat on Thursday, telling reporters he could be the president who finally takes direct action against Havana after decades of failed threats from Washington.

"Other presidents have looked at this for 50, 60 years," Trump said. "It looks like I'll be the one that does it."

Separately, Secretary of State Marco Rubio — a longtime Cuba hawk and the son of Cuban immigrants — said the chances of a negotiated settlement with Havana were "not high" and cast the dispute as a threat to American national security.

In response, Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez accused Rubio of lying "to instigate a military aggression that would provoke the shedding of Cuban and American blood."

Recent Developments

The escalation came just a day after the US charged Cuba's former president Raúl Castro with murder over the downing of two planes in 1996, which resulted in the killing of US nationals.

Cuba's current president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, blasted the charges as a "political stunt" designed to justify possible American aggression against the island.

Trump has openly discussed toppling Cuba's regime and demands vague political reforms. The dispute has invited pointed criticism from Russia and China, urging Washington to stop threatening Cuba with force.

Humanitarian Situation

Meanwhile, Cubans continue to suffer from a fuel crisis exacerbated by a US oil blockade, with citizens still experiencing food shortages and recurring blackouts.

Trump's Mixed Messages

For months, the US president has been clear in his intentions with the Caribbean island. "I do believe I'll have the honour of taking Cuba," he told reporters in March. "That would be good… I think I can do anything I want with it."

However, maintaining strategic ambiguity, Trump then said in a string of mixed messages on Wednesday that while "we have to help Cuban people," he can't say what's next for the island nation, and there "won't be escalation in Cuba."

Havana's Response

Havana has responded forcefully to the threats from Washington, accusing it of "economic warfare" and saying suggestions that Washington could "liberate" Cuba were cynical and hypocritical.

Fresh sanctions on the Cuban regime were announced on May 1 by the White House, who said they would target entities and individuals complicit with alleged corruption and rights violations by the Cuban government and its security apparatus.

What Have US and Cuban Officials Said?

The US and Cuba have had strained relations for decades, stemming from the island's communist revolution and the disastrous Washington-backed Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961.

President Trump has pushed for regime change in Cuba, where communists have been in charge since Fidel Castro led a revolution in 1959.

But Rubio insists the United States would prefer a diplomatic solution to the crisis.

"That remains our preference with Cuba," he told reporters this week.