President Donald Trump told a campaign rally in Fort Myers, Florida, on Friday that US warships returning from the Iran war could stop off the coast of Cuba before Secretary of State Marco Rubio was sent in to finish a deal, ABC News reports, carrying Associated Press coverage. Trump first floated the idea earlier this year but had not raised it for months.
Shortly afterwards, Rubio posted on social media that now was the time for action on Cuba, urging people seeking change on the island to form a discreet partnership with the CIA.
US officials have held talks with Cuban counterparts in recent months but came away unimpressed, and further sanctions followed. Cuba has suffered an economic and energy crisis since 2020, with blackouts, food shortages and large-scale emigration. The rally came days before the US midterm elections.
Source: ABC News
