America Besieges Cuba: Economic pressure, military threats violate intel law: Report

Havana – Saba:

US President Donald Trump continues an unprecedented campaign of pressure and threats against Cuba, exceeding in severity and scope all preceding US sanctions spanning six decades.

From the suffocating economic blockade that exacerbates the suffering of the Cuban people and seeks to incite them against their political regime, to explicit and crude threats of invasion and military aggression, reaching the imposition of a forced, patronizing dialogue on Havana under the weight of simultaneous pressure and suffocation—all of these steps constitute gradual tools and mechanisms in an American strategy with a clear objective: regime change in Cuba.

But the question that imposes itself is: What does the aggressive Trump administration actually seek behind this escalating campaign? Is it merely a traditional sanctions policy aimed at modifying the Cuban government’s behavior toward Washington, or is it a prelude to more dangerous steps that cross the boundaries of international law and reproduce the scenarios of military intervention that destroyed other countries and cemented America’s presence as fascist?

Amid escalating tensions, Trump’s issuance of executive orders expanding the blockade to include secondary sanctions targeting foreign entities dealing with Cuba, and his repeated threats of a “military solution,” it appears that Washington is not content with merely besieging Havana economically. Instead, it seeks to topple it at any cost, even if it comes at the expense of the principles of international law and the UN Charter. Is this escalation a prelude to direct military action, or is it merely a leverage card in a broader geopolitical game?

Furthermore, what lies behind Washington’s accusation against former Cuban leader Raúl Castro of murder and conspiracy in the 1996 shoot-down of two planes? This step is viewed by many as a potential pretext for a new military escalation under the Trump administration, or a justification for any illegal step Washington might undertake.
According to international law experts at the University of Reading in the UK, the US campaign to deprive Cuba of its primary energy source with the aim of overthrowing its government represents “the clearest example of unlawful intervention in the internal affairs of another state.”

Additionally, President Trump’s repeated statements regarding potential military action constitute threats to use force, which is prohibited under the UN Charter.

UN human rights experts have condemned US Executive Order 14380, issued on January 29, 2026, describing it as a “serious violation of international law” and an “extreme form of unilateral economic coercion” aimed at forcing sovereign nations to alter their legitimate trade relations.

In May 2026, the US administration expanded the sanctions via Executive Order 14404 to include secondary sanctions targeting foreign entities doing business with Cuba, including foreign financial institutions, marking an unprecedented expansion of the economic blockade.
In response to this US escalation, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez stressed that the US government continues to take measures aimed at tightening the blockade on the Cuban economy, despite his country’s resilience and ability to confront the economic pressures and imposed sanctions.

Rodríguez added in a post on X platform, monitored by the Yemen News Agency (SABA), that Cuba has proven to be stronger, more capable, and more effective than Washington anticipated in confronting the “brutal aggression and collective punishment” imposed on the Cuban people and their living conditions.

The Cuban Foreign Minister criticized US policy toward his country, considering that the measures pushed forward by the US Secretary of State represent a “crime” committed from the position of influence enjoyed by the United States as the world’s largest power.

These statements come at a time when Washington has long sought to overthrow or weaken the Cuban government, while Havana asserts that Trump seeks to seize the country, its resources, and its assets, and to strangle the island’s economy amid an worsening electricity crisis and fuel shortages.

Rubio’s Lies and Fallacies
Earlier, the Cuban Foreign Minister criticized the lies of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, through which he attempts to justify the aggression against Cuba and the military-style US blockade.
Rodríguez stated in a post on the X platform, monitored by the Yemen News Agency (Saba): “When the US Secretary of State talks about incompetence in Cuba, he should be asked why he chronically lies and contradicts his president and official spokeswoman, denying the existence of the total fuel blockade that the White House itself acknowledges.”

He added: “If it were a matter of incompetence, why do they impose an oil blockade and secondary sanctions? Every time he speaks about the situation in our country, he tries to evade any responsibility and present himself as a savior.”

The Cuban minister called on the world to notice these fallacies, saying: “But beware: it is a comprehensive blockade, very similar to a blockade of a military nature. At the same time, he openly calls for undermining the Cuban constitutional order and persistently seeks to push America toward a military intervention in Cuba.”

He explained that “Washington’s economic strangulation plan against Cuba includes preventing foreign companies from selling spare parts or technologies necessary for Cuban thermoelectric power plants.”

He continued: “It also prevents any company in the world from selling oil to our country and imposes sanctions on the Cuban company CUPET, which owns the infrastructure and capabilities necessary for fuel logistics in Cuba.”

Three Scenarios

For his part, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel warned that the United States is betting on three scenarios in dealing with Cuba.
DíApp-Canel opined that the first scenario consists of “economic strangulation aimed at provoking a social explosion, to then exploit it under the pretext of humanitarian aid to intervene in the country.”
He added that the second scenario is based on “a forced dialogue with Cuba based on maximum pressure, aiming to control the Cuban economy, which would subsequently allow imposing a change in the political regime.”

The Cuban President pointed out that the third scenario is “military aggression.”

Deep Strategic Frustration
Turkish writer Ertuğrul Çıngıl considered that the United States, having failed to achieve the “quick victory” it was looking for in the war with Iran—which has turned into an endless story fluctuating between a ceasefire and a blockade, and between war and peace—is now preparing to vent the bill of its deep strategic frustration on Cuba.
He added, in an article published recently by the “Turk Press” website, that the administration of US President Donald Trump is executing a multi-level “maximum pressure” strategy against Cuba, encompassing a financial blockade, energy pressure, intelligence operations, diplomatic isolation, and even military movements.

He emphasized that “after Trump failed to extricate himself from the war quagmire in Iran, which he entered at the instigation of Israel—which faces accusations of committing genocide—he is now seeking to divert attention to another direction and deliver an ‘easy victory’ to American public opinion and his hardline electoral bloc.”

He added, “For this precise reason, Cuba, with its population of 11 million people who have been exhausted for long years under the weight of the blockade, has become a new laboratory for the illusions of American power.”

Çıngıl noted that “the conflict that has been ongoing for nearly seventy years between Cuba and the United States is not limited to diplomatic tension between two countries, but rather represents one of the longest conflict fronts in the fields of ideology, intelligence, economic warfare, and the rivalry for global influence.”

According to the writer, “the revolution led by Fidel Castro in 1959, which overthrew the Washington-backed Batista regime, was considered a historic blow to American influence in the Caribbean.”

He explained that “as the Trump administration stumbles on the Iranian front today, it continues to pursue the ‘quick victory’ it seeks before the November 3 midterm elections by testing its aggressive policies in Cuba, ranging from blockades to military pressures.”

He said, “This arrogant blockade executed by the Trump administration through Marco Rubio has turned into a dangerous gamble that tests not only an island nation but also international law, regional stability, and the global legitimacy of the United States.”

The writer concluded that “the Cuban resistance, which has not been broken for seventy years despite assassinations, sabotage operations, and blockades, possesses today a deep-rooted memory too profound to be sacrificed for the electoral investments of the American right.”

Seeking an Easy Gain in Cuba
In a similar context, writer Owen Jones stated that the “US war machine” has turned its gaze toward Cuba, pointing to statements by the US Secretary of State of Cuban origin, Marco Rubio, “who has long yearned for the fall of the communist government on the island, and repeated this again last week. While expressing his preference for a negotiated settlement, he said the chances of reaching an agreement are not high.”

Jones published an article in the British newspaper *The Guardian* under the title *”Humiliated by Iran, the US is looking for an easy win: target Cuba,”* in which he appended a reminder of the context behind the US selection of Cuba, saying: “The US has now charged the country’s former president, Raúl Castro, with conspiracy to murder US citizens, four counts of murder, and two counts of destruction of aircraft, over the 1996 shooting down of two planes.”
He added, “The evidence points increasingly in one direction, a grim reminder of the indictment leveled against Nicolás Maduro, the president of Venezuela, which was used to justify his kidnapping by US forces.”

Jones cited a statement by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said the United States was “being humiliated” by Iran.

The writer continued, “One might think that Trump’s appetite for conflict would wane, but failure does not necessarily restrain retreating powers; it can make them more dangerous. No doubt Trump and his team have convinced themselves that invading a Caribbean island that has defied Washington for nearly seven decades could erase defeats and restore the aura of US military supremacy.”

Jones pointed out that Trump does not hide his intentions regarding this, having stated in March: “I think I will have… the honor of taking over Cuba,” in “a phrasing reminiscent of 19th-century European colonizers partitioning Africa.”
He views in his article that the Trump administration’s leaking of intelligence claiming Cuba obtained more than 300 military drones—supposedly to attack the US base at Guantanamo Bay—is “a desperate, flimsy attempt to mimic the weapons of mass destruction pretext used to invade Iraq.”

He concluded by saying: “There is little doubt about what Trump is planning. Who can forget that horrifying AI video he posted of Gaza, depicting the devastating rubble turned into a luxury Trump-branded development, featuring yachts and skyscrapers?”

Strangling Cuba’s Oil to Overthrow the Regime
Political analyst in American affairs, Numan Abu Issa, confirmed that the current US administration seeks to apply the “Monroe Doctrine,” which aims to impose complete hegemony over North and South America.

Abu Issa explained, during an intervention on the *Extra News* channel, that Washington succeeded partially in changing the situation in Venezuela and is now placing Cuba as its next target, considering it the only remaining regime in the region that is still outside of American control and adheres to its socialist principles, according to the Egyptian newspaper *Al-Youm Al-Sabea*.

He pointed out that the United States’ goal behind the policy of “economic strangulation” is to bring the Cuban economy to “the brink of failure and collapse” to force the Cuban government to make major political concessions, open its markets to American companies and investments—especially in the tourism sector—and abandon its current approach.

Regarding the probability of military intervention, Numan Abu Issa mentioned that the US administration always waves the threat of military force and increases the presence of its ships in Cuban waters, but he ruled out a comprehensive military confrontation at the current time.

He attributed this to “the preoccupation of most US forces on other fronts, particularly in the Middle East with Iran,” stressing that “Washington fears a repetition of the failure experienced in Iraq and currently prefers using the weapon of sanctions and non-profit organizations to destabilize the regime from within.”

Despite all this, analysts do not rule out Washington taking any additional step or steps against Cuba economically or militarily; there are other examples that preceded Cuba in exposing American imperialism and fascism.