US Warships to Halt 50 Yards From Cuba While Rubio Pitches CIA Partnership

Washington has moved to pair a visible display of naval power with a covert request for domestic allies on the island, marking a tactical shift in US policy toward Cuba. President Donald Trump announced on Friday that American warships returning from the conflict in Iran will make a stopover near the Cuban coast, a plan he had previously mentioned earlier in the year but had not referenced in recent months.

Speaking at a rally for candidates in south Florida, Trump described the logistical details of the maneuver. He stated that ships would pass by the island and one vessel would stop approximately 50 yards from the shore. The president said the crew would raise their hands in a gesture visible to the island, after which Secretary of State Marco Rubio would be sent to "finish up the deal." The event occurred just days before the midterm elections, where voters have expressed concern over the impact of the Iran war on the prices of goods such as gas and groceries.

Rubio amplified the message in a social media post directed at Cubans seeking political change. He declared that "now is the time" for action, citing corruption and broken promises as reasons for the push. He specifically invited those who want to create change to form a "discrete partnership with the CIA." Rubio, whose parents left Cuba before the socialist revolution, used the word "discrete" in the post, a term that typically means separate, though he likely intended "discreet," meaning private or secret.

The administration has taken an aggressive stance toward Havana in recent months. In May, Trump and Rubio raised the prospect of military action, a threat that gained weight after the government filed criminal charges against former leader Raúl Castro. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that previous presidents had considered intervening for decades but that "it looks like I'll be the one that does it." Rubio argued that Cuba remains a national security threat due to its ties to US adversaries, adding that a peaceful resolution was unlikely with the current government in power.

Havana responded to the Friday announcements with mockery. Cuban deputy foreign minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio wrote on X that the US was "resorting to public recruitment for the CIA." He commented that the agency must be experiencing "a great deal of desperation or misery" to be "forced to sell its services like a tube of toothpaste."

Diplomatic efforts between the two nations have been inconsistent. Rubio and other senior aides met with Cuban officials in recent months to explore better relations, but the US side expressed disappointment with the progress, leading to additional sanctions. Last month, Trump told reporters at the United Nations that he expected the two countries "will make a deal" and that the military would not be needed. However, the two governments clashed at the UN earlier this week as Washington sought to build opposition to an upcoming annual vote condemning the US economic embargo.

Cuba has faced an economic and energy crisis since 2020. Its gross domestic product has shrunk, and its 10 million residents have endured blackouts, food shortages, and inflation. Waves of protests have occurred during this period, and hundreds of thousands of Cubans have emigrated, many to the United States.