Havana — Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel He said Thursday that while Cuba He does not want military aggression from the United States, as his country is ready to fight if that happens.
Díaz-Canel spoke during a rally that attracted hundreds of people to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Declaration of the Socialist Essence of the Cuban Revolution.
“This moment is extremely difficult and calls upon us once again, as it did on April 16, 1961, to be prepared to confront serious threats, including military aggression,” Díaz-Canel said. “We do not want that, but it is our duty to prepare to avoid it and, if it becomes inevitable, to defeat it.”
And he spoke as Tensions remain high Between the two countries, with Cuba’s crises worsen As a result of the American energy blockade.
Earlier this week, Trump said his administration could focus on Cuba after the presidential election War in Iran Ends.
“We might stop in Cuba after we finish this,” he said. He described it as a “failed nation” and asserted that it had “been a terribly run country for a long time.”
Trump has previously threatened to intervene in Cuba, as he did in early January when… The US military attacked Venezuela It halted major oil shipments from the South American country.
Weeks later, Trump Threatened tariffs On any country that sells or supplies oil to Cuba.
Both Trump and the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio — whose parents immigrated from Cuba in the 1950s before the revolution — described the island’s government as ineffective and abusive. The American demands of the Cuban government in exchange for easing sanctions included an end to political repression, the release of political prisoners, and the liberalization of the island’s faltering economy.
Diaz-Canel accused them of trying to build a “narrative” that has no justification.
“Cuba is not a failed state. Cuba is a state under siege. Cuba is a state facing multidimensional aggression: economic war, an intensified blockade, an energy blockade,” said Diaz-Canel, the keynote speaker at Thursday’s rally.
“Cuba is a threatened country that does not surrender. Despite everything. Thanks to socialism. Cuba is a country that resists, creates, and make no mistake, a country that will prevail.” Diaz-Canel He added.
Both Cuba and the United States The conversations were acknowledged To resolve the tension, but the details have not been revealed.
The Cuban President recalled the achievements of the revolution and the social welfare system that allows free education, which has trained thousands of professionals, many of whom They chose to emigrate Because of the economic crisis the country is going through.
The oil embargo imposed by Trump exacerbated the situation Really harsh conditions Caused by an economic crisis that has been going on for five years, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic and the tightening of US sanctions aimed at pushing for a change in the island’s political model.
Experts warned of a humanitarian crisis.
The measures taken to prevent the island from obtaining oil from its Venezuelan, Mexican and Russian suppliers exacerbate the already poor living conditions of the population, including Power outages for long periods And fuel shortages.
The march commemorated the 65th anniversary of the historic speech delivered by the late leader. Fidel CastroDuring the crisis with the United States. That moment marked the ideological course the Caribbean nation would take and its opposition to Washington’s continental hegemony.
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