Rubio Urges Cubans to Partner With US Intelligence After Trump Says Warships Could Stop Off Cuba

At a Friday rally in South Florida, President Trump said US warships returning from the Iran war could stop near Cuba. "Those beautiful ships will pass Cuba. We'll have one of them stop about 50 yards off the coast. They'll raise up their hands," he said, before adding that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would "finish up the deal," CBC reported. Investing.com reported that Trump said the United States would "take care of Cuba" on its way back from Iran. He first raised the idea earlier this year and revived it in response to a question shouted from the crowd.

Moments later, Rubio told Cubans seeking political change that "now is the time," The Guardian reported. In his post on X, Rubio urged them to pursue change "through a discrete partnership with the CIA," according to CNN en Español. Al Jazeera described the message as a call for Cubans to work secretly with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to bring down their government. The CIA then posted guidance in Spanish on social media, listing contact channels and digital security precautions, Periódico Cubano reported.

Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel answered on X that the US government "makes clear it does not renounce its ambitions of domination over Cuba," according to Directorio Cubano. He said Cubans won their independence on January 1, 1959, and are determined to defend it. He added that the US embargo, not Cuba, is the threat.