Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has stated that his government is not currently in talks with Washington, remaining defiant as the Trump administration seeks to pressure Cuba into a deal following the U.S. military strike on Venezuela. In a series of posts on X, Díaz-Canel said relations must be based on international law rather than hostility, threats, and economic coercion. The remarks come after Trump's announcement that Cuba will no longer receive Venezuelan oil, a lifeline for the island battered by decades of U.S. sanctions.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has firmly rebuffed pressures from the Donald Trump administration, which is attempting to coerce Havana into a deal in the wake of the recent U.S. military strike on Venezuela. In a series of posts on the social network X, Díaz-Canel stated: “As history demonstrates, relations between the U.S. and Cuba, in order to advance, must be based on International Law rather than on hostility, threats, and economic coercion.”
The defiance comes amid escalating tensions, heightened by Trump's Sunday announcement that Cuba will cease receiving oil supplies from Venezuela. That crude has been crucial for Cuba, whose economy has endured decades under the burden of U.S. economic sanctions. The cutoff delivers a major blow to the island, which relies on Venezuelan oil to alleviate the impact of those restrictions.
Díaz-Canel's position highlights Cuba's commitment to sovereignty and refusal to negotiate under duress. No current talks between the two governments are reported, signaling an ongoing diplomatic stalemate. This development fits into a broader pattern of Trump administration actions targeting Venezuela's allies, including control over its oil reserves and a naval blockade.
