The United States Department of Justice is considering filing federal charges against officials or entities of the Government of Cuba, according to what the newspaper announced exclusively this Friday. The Washington Postwhose information does not offer, however, the name of any Cuban official under the White House radar.
The policy of the Trump Administration in Venezuela, with the capture of the president Nicolas Madurois echoed in the other objective that the Pentagon aims for: the end of the communist regime that governs the island.
Washington’s strategy seeks to suffocate the Cuban Government from the economic front. The climate of tension on the island does not arise in a vacuum. It is the direct result of the tightening of US policy under the presidency of Donald Trump and the accelerated deterioration of the internal situation on the island.
Economic sanctions, the blockade of oil shipments and diplomatic pressure have aggravated a crisis that was already hitting the population hard. The country faces prolonged blackouts, fuel shortages and serious supply problems.
In this context of economic weakness and growing social unrest, the possibility of US military intervention has entered the public debate.
For some Cubans, exhausted after years of hardship, pressure from Washington could precipitate the end of the current political system. For others, the fear is that this strategy will end up pushing the country into a conflict scenario that would further aggravate the situation of a population already on the brink.
Concern grows in some neighborhoods of Havana as the United States increases its pressure on the island. Trump on Thursday mentioned the possibility of military intervention in Cuba once his troops end the war in Iran.
According to the New York Timesa few weeks ago, several Cuban intelligence agents dressed in civilian clothes they knocked on the doors of community leaders who live near a military installation.
A woman holds a sign and Cuban flags as supporters of US President Donald Trump participate in a protest against the Government of Cuba.
Reuters
Apparently, these agents wanted to establish a list with the names of all the residents of the area in order, as they explained to one person, to prepare evacuation plans.
This scene reflects the atmosphere that is currently breathed in Cuba. Although daily life continues, unrest has increased among part of the population due to fear that the island could be dragged into a military escalation.
Trump himself made his prediction by pointing to the fall of the Cuban regime after the end of the support it was receiving from Venezuela.
For the Republican president, the end of the current Cuban Government is near, in his words “thanks to the intervention” from the United States.
The last time he spoke was this Friday when, in a telephone conversation with CNN, the Republican president assured that the Cuban Government will fall “very soon” and reiterated that Havana is “very eager” to negotiate with Washington.
Trump insisted that the island’s communist regime would be the next target after a “successful” campaign in the Middle East, which this Friday reached its seventh day and in whose initial attacks the Ayatollah died Ali Jamenei and a large part of the leadership of the Iranian regime.
“Cuba is going to fall very soon, by the way, without any relation, but Cuba is also going to fall. They really want to reach an agreement,” he said.
Cuban citizens, residents in the United States, gather to call for the fall of the Cuban regime.
Reuters
This fear with which the Cuban population lives has intensified after the latest international events. In addition to the capture of Maduro, the operation carried out in Caracas also led to the death of more than a hundred people, including 32 Cubans who were part of the Venezuelan president’s security detail.
Just two months later, the United States began a major offensive against the Islamic Republic of Iran in which the country’s supreme leader was killed.
The succession of these episodes has fueled uncertainty among some Cubanswho fear that the Caribbean island could become the next target of the Trump Administration’s policy.
Given this possibility, the Times has spoken with a community leader from Havana who asked not to reveal her identity as she is not authorized to speak publicly about her contacts with the security services.
This woman simply reflected the “fear” that exists in the island’s population regarding the possibility that the conflict will intensify in the near future.
Despite everything, military intervention is not the only possibility that is the solution to the problem experienced in the Caribbean nation.
According to Trump, his country could choose “take Cuba in a friendly way“, reaching some type of agreement with the regime, similar to that achieved in Venezuela.
In parallel, he explained that “everyone wanted a change” and that his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio“is managing it” for it to occur.
In any case, from the Cuban regime, headed by President Miguel Diaz-Canelthey appeal to the “Castro epic” and point out that they will “exhaust every last drop of blood” rather than give in to Trump.
Cuba is simultaneously going through one of the worst economic and energy crises in recent decades. The fuel shortage has caused prolonged blackouts, paralyzed part of public transportation and made it difficult for industries and basic services to operate.
Much of this situation is due to the interruption of the supply of oil from Venezuela, which for years covered approximately a third of the island’s energy needs.
After the US attack against the South American country and the takeover of its oil industry, That flow of crude oil from the Caribbean country to Havana has stoppedwhich is causing serious problems for the communist regime.
Added to this is an executive order signed by US President Donald Trump that threatens to impose tariffs on any country that supplies oil to Cuba, a measure that especially affects Mexico.
A person rides an electric scooter during a massive blackout that affects much of Cuba
Reuters
The combination of sanctions and shortages has aggravated a humanitarian crisis already visible in the daily lives of Cubans. Blackouts have become frequent, finding fuel is increasingly difficult and food is scarce in markets.
In some hospitals, surgeries have been canceled due to lack of resources, while imported food remains in ports without being able to be transported to the interior of the country due to lack of fuel.
Opinion division
In this context, the fear of a military confrontation is mixed with the fatigue of a population that has been facing economic difficulties for years.
Although the majority of the population does not want the conflict to escalate, there are also a large number of people still residing in the country who want political change that can improve their quality of life.
This is how he expresses it Giovanny Fardalesa 53-year-old translator living in Cuba. Fardales assures that many citizens are waiting for a military intervention from the United States, since he believes that “can put an end to this current political system“.
In parallel, he explains that he has heard the same opinion in conversations with people from different social backgrounds. In addition, it also points out that other Cubans believe that the country’s main problem is the daily economic crisis, due to the regime’s economic policies.
“Everyone says the same thing: Americans have to come for this to end“, he stated in a text message sent to Times.
His words are similar to those of Alina Lopeza historian and critic of the Government, remembers that when she was at university, in the 1980s, she had to spend two weeks building bunkers along a stretch of about 50 kilometers of the northern coastal highway, east of Havana.
López, assures in words collected by the Timesthat “the population is more afraid of the war we wage to survive under this regime than of what may come from outside,” in reference to a possible US intervention on Cuban soil.
Protesters carry flags of the United States and Cuba, given the increase in tension between both countries.
Reuters
In addition, the aforementioned media has also spoken with a former computer science teacher who now sells snacks at a kiosk.
For this woman, the concern of Cubans is “the situation we live here, with salaries that are not enough and the fear of knowing if they will cut off our electricity or gas,” she said.