Against a backdrop of economic strangulation that has already left Cuba without reliable power, fuel, or food, the American president has now placed a military option on the table, and attached to it a clock: the years remaining in his term. It is a familiar human pattern, a powerful state reaching for force when pressure has not produced the surrender it hoped for, and the words spoken on a radio call carry weight far beyond their casual tone. Whether this remains rhetoric or hardens into plan will depend on the decisions yet to be made, and on the ordinary Cubans who wait in the dark while t
Trump Says He Would 'Certainly Consider' Military Force Against Cuba Before Leaving Office
The US oil blockade has caused repeated nationwide blackouts, fuel and food shortages, and a humanitarian crisis in Cuba.
"I want to get Cuba done before I leave," he said.
Mark
Trump said he'd "certainly consider" military force against Cuba. Why does this one land differently from earlier threats?
Mimi
Because of the timeline. Politico reported it was the first time he'd tied a possible operation to leaving office in 2029. "I want to get Cuba done before I leave" is a deadline, not just a mood.
Luke
Though it's still one phone interview. "Would certainly consider" is not an order, and nothing in the reporting shows a plan.
Mark
And the context is the blockade?
Mimi
Yes. Since January the US has run a de facto oil blockade after seizing Maduro and cutting off Venezuelan oil. Cuba has had repeated nationwide blackouts and shortages of fuel and food.
Luke
Worth noting "humanitarian crisis" and "collective punishment" are how the reporting and Cuban officials describe it. The source gives no casualty or shortage figures.
Mark
Trump also mentioned Rubio and Cuban Americans.
Mimi
He said Rubio "would love to do it" and that he won the Cuban vote in Florida by a wide margin. That's his framing of motive.
Luke
Rubio's own view isn't reported here. That's Trump speaking for him.
Mark
Is there any sign of military preparation?
Mimi
In March the head of Southern Command told senators troops weren't rehearsing an invasion. Cuba says it's ready for any attack.
Luke
That testimony is eight months old. We don't know whether anything has changed since.
Le Pouls
- The president told a conservative radio host he would 'certainly consider' military force against Cuba and wants to 'get Cuba done' before 2029.
- A de facto US oil blockade since January has left Cuba with repeated nationwide blackouts and shortages of fuel and food.
- Fresh sanctions targeting 10 people and entities tied to Cuba's government, military and oil sector have tightened the squeeze.
- Talks on the blockade have stalled, with Cuba's foreign minister reporting 'no progress' and Havana saying it is ready for any attack.
- Watchers are asking whether this rhetoric will harden into a policy with a plan behind it.
Against a backdrop of economic strangulation that has already left Cuba without reliable power, fuel, or food, the American president has now placed a military option on the table, and attached to it a clock: the years remaining in his term. It is a familiar human pattern, a powerful state reaching for force when pressure has not produced the surrender it hoped for, and the words spoken on a radio call carry weight far beyond their casual tone. Whether this remains rhetoric or hardens into plan will depend on the decisions yet to be made, and on the ordinary Cubans who wait in the dark while those decisions are weighed.
On Thursday, in a phone interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt, President Donald Trump was asked whether he was considering military intervention to 'free Cuba.' He said he would 'certainly consider' it, adding that he wanted to 'get Cuba done before I leave,' a reference to the end of his term in 2029. He described the island as a failed nation and said Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose parents came from Cuba, 'would love to do it.' Politico noted it was the first time he had attached a timeline to a possible operation.
The remarks follow a run of similar statements. Earlier this week he said Cuba 'will fall fairly soon,' and in March, as the island's power grid collapsed, he spoke of having 'the honour of taking Cuba.' The words sit atop a hard reality. Since January, when Venezuelan oil to Cuba was cut off and Washington imposed a de facto oil blockade, the island has suffered repeated nationwide blackouts and shortages of fuel and food. Cuban officials call it collective punishment.
Washington has added sanctions aimed at the state oil company, the president Miguel Diaz-Canel, and relatives of former president Raul Castro, and this month announced a new round against ten more individuals and entities. Talks have made little headway, and Havana says the island is ready for any attack. What remains open is whether this pressure and these words harden into action, or fade back into rhetoric.
In a phone interview on Thursday with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt of Salem News Channel, US President Donald Trump was asked a direct question: was he considering "freeing Cuba" through military intervention? He answered that he would "certainly consider" it. "I want to get Cuba done before I leave," he said, referring to his departure from office in 2029, and added that the administration was "watching it very closely."
Trump described the island as "essentially a failed ... place, nation, whatever you wanna call it." Politico reported that this was the first time he had attached a timeline to a possible operation against Cuba.
He also brought up Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose parents are from Cuba. Rubio, Trump said, "would love to do it." Trump framed the idea as something he would like to do for Cubans who came to the United States and, in his words, were treated really badly. He added that he won the Cuban vote in Florida by a wide margin.
The interview is the latest in a run of threats. On Monday, Trump said Cuba "will fall fairly soon" and that the US would help it "on a humanitarian basis." In March, as the island's power grid collapsed, he said he believed he would have "the honour of taking Cuba."
The words come against a concrete pressure campaign. In January, after the US seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and cut off Venezuelan oil to Cuba, Trump placed the island under a de facto oil blockade. He signed an executive order declaring Cuba an "unusual and extraordinary threat" to the United States and threatened tariffs on any country that supplied it with fuel.
The blockade has produced repeated nationwide blackouts, shortages of fuel and food, and a humanitarian crisis. Cuban officials call it "collective punishment."
Washington has layered on further sanctions, including measures against Cuba's state oil company, President Miguel Diaz-Canel, and relatives of former President Raul Castro. This month it announced a new round targeting 10 people and entities tied to the government, military and oil industry. The US has also issued an arrest warrant for Castro.
Diplomacy has not moved much. Officials from both sides have held talks on the blockade, but Cuba's foreign minister said in June that there had been "no progress." In March, the head of US Southern Command told senators that US troops were not rehearsing for an invasion of Cuba. Cuban officials, for their part, say the island is ready for any attack.
What to watch now is whether the sanctions and stalled talks harden into something more, and whether Thursday's remark remains rhetoric or becomes a policy with a plan behind it.
Citations marquantes
I want to get Cuba done before I leave.— Donald Trump, interview with Hugh Hewitt
Cuban officials call the blockade 'collective punishment' and say the island is ready for any attack.— Cuban officials
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