US President Donald Trump has warned of possible military intervention in Cuba, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that Cuba has been a national security threat for years.
Trump said previous US presidents have considered intervening in Cuba for decades, but that ‘it looks like I´ll be the one that does it.’
“Other presidents have looked at this for 50, 60 years, doing something,” Trump told reporters when asked about Cuba during an environmental event in the Oval Office. “And, it looks like I’ll be the one that does it. So, I would be happy to do it.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters separately that Cuba has been a national security threat for years because of its ties to U.S. adversaries and that Trump is intent on addressing it.
Rubio says the US prefers a negotiated agreement with Cuba.
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, said the Trump administration wants to resolve differences with Cuba peacefully, but is doubtful the U.S. can reach a diplomatic resolution with the island’s current government.
Trump’s “preference is always a negotiated agreement that’s peaceful. That’s always our preference. That remains our preference with Cuba,” Rubio said in Miami before boarding a plane to attend a NATO meeting in Sweden and then visit India.
“I’m just being honest with you, you know, the likelihood of that happening, given who we’re dealing with right now, is not high,” he said.
When asked whether the U.S. would use force in Cuba to change the island’s political system, Rubio repeated that a diplomatic settlement was preferred but noted that “the president always has the option to do whatever it takes to support and protect the national interest.
He pushed back on a reporter’s suggestion that it sounded like “nation-building,” insisting it was about addressing a national security risk.
Top Trump aides, including Rubio, CIA chief John Ratcliffe, and other senior national security officials, have met with Cuban officials in recent months to explore possible improvements in relations.