Trump, Defeated in Midterms, Wants to 'Resolve' Cuba After Venezuela and Iran

[Financial News] During the first half of his second term, U.S. President Donald Trump attacked Venezuela and Iran. He said he wanted to resolve the Cuba issue within the next two years and could also use military force. Having been made less able to pass domestic legislation by the opposition’s victory in this month’s midterm elections, Trump is likely to focus on foreign activities that do not require congressional approval for the rest of his term.
In an interview released on the 12th (local time) by the right-wing U.S. radio program The Hugh Hewitt Show, Trump said, “I want to resolve the Cuba issue before my term ends.” He added, “There is a very capable and good person who can handle this. It’s U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose parents are from Cuba.”
Trump said Rubio wanted this very much, emphasizing, “Cuba has failed. I hope we can do that for people who came to the United States after being treated very badly [in Cuba].” Asked whether he would be okay with it even if it required some military force or a military operation lasting about a week, Trump replied, “Yes. I will definitely consider it.”
Trump, who began his second administration in January last year, redesignated Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism as soon as he took office and barred Cuban leaders from entering the United States in July of the same year. After attacking Venezuela and capturing President Nicolás Maduro in January this year, Trump cut off Venezuelan oil supplies to Cuba, beginning to pressure the country in earnest. Last January, Trump said he would impose secondary sanctions on countries supplying energy products to Cuba, and last August he imposed sweeping sanctions on the Cuban government and state-owned entities.
Last March, Trump said he could do whatever he wanted in Cuba and that he would “have the honor of occupying Cuba.” In September, he claimed in a speech to the U.N. General Assembly that Cuba’s regime would fall, prompting the Cuban delegation to walk out. At a campaign rally for the midterms on the 24th of last month, Trump said, “U.S. warships will pass by Cuba,” and claimed that if Cuba surrendered, “I’ll send Rubio to finish the negotiations.”
It is unclear whether Trump’s latest remarks will lead to an invasion of Cuba. U.S. media outlets said Trump lost Republican majorities in both the House and Senate in the midterm elections on the 3rd, and predicted he could focus for the rest of his term on foreign activities requiring relatively little congressional approval. On the 12th, he posted on Truth Social, claiming, “There is no need for an agreement with Iran [to end the war].”
The remarks may, however, be political rhetoric aimed at public opinion in the United States. The Republicans held on to their Senate and gubernatorial seats in Florida even as they lost key strongholds in this midterm election. Cuban American immigrants in Florida who went into exile in opposition to Cuba’s socialist regime support Republicans who take a hard line on Cuba.
[email protected] Park Jong-won Reporter