Rubio urges those seeking change in Cuba to partner with CIA

Reuters

24 October, 2026, 12:55 pm

Last modified: 24 October, 2026, 12:56 pm

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged people seeking change in Cuba to partner with the Central Intelligence Agency, as President Donald Trump said Washington would address the island after dealing with Iran.

• "We'll take care of Cuba on our way back from Iran ... then we're going to send Marco Rubio in to finish up the deal," Trump told a rally in Florida.
• "To those who seek to create positive change in Cuba - now is the time," Rubio, who has been handling much of the Trump administration's Cuba policy, said on X on Friday.
• Rubio urged those dissatisfied with Cuba's government to "seize this opportunity to create the change you desire through a discrete partnership with the CIA," without providing further details.
• The Trump administration has previously stated that its goal is to change Cuba's communist government.
• A US-imposed oil blockade, implemented earlier this year, has put Cuba under severe strain as the country faces fuel shortages and blackouts exacerbated by failing infrastructure.
• Washington has maintained an embargo on Cuba for more than 60 years.
• The Trump administration has increased pressure on Havana since the US military seized then-Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a deadly raid in January.
• Cuba's foreign minister told the UN General Assembly last month that the country would always be open to dialogue with Washington.
• UN rights experts have condemned the oil blockade as a violation of international law, while rights advocates have said the Trump administration's threats echo an imperialist approach.
• Trump said last month that the United States and Cuba would reach an agreement and that he did not think military action would be necessary.