Cuba admits for the first time to talks with the Trump administration

BarcelonaAmid the economic suffocation the country is experiencingCuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel confirmed on Friday that several officials from his government recently held talks with representatives of the United States government to "seek solutions" to "bilateral differences." Until now, Havana had denied rumors that the two countries had begun a dialogue. Donald Trump himself... He had said that these conversations were taking place, But Havana denied it.

In a statement released on social media, the Communist Party of Cuba didn't offer many clues about the status of the talks. It simply stated that they are focused on "seeking solutions through dialogue to the differences between the two governments." The objective is "to identify the problems that need solutions" and put possible answers to these issues on the table, as well as "to determine the willingness of both parties to take concrete actions for the benefit of the people of both countries."

In recent days, amid the bombings against Iran, Trump has asserted that Cuba "will fall pretty soon." "They're eager to make a deal," he said in a conversation with a CNN journalist last week. Earlier, at the end of February, several media outlets reported that several US officials from Secretary of State Marco Rubio's team had met on the Caribbean island of Saint Kitts and Nevis with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, Fidel Castro's grandson, known as "El Cangrejo" (The Crab).

Havana has so far provided few details about when and where the talks took place, and has not confirmed who its interlocutor is. According to the official press, Díaz-Canel reportedly stated in a meeting with the country's political leaders that there are "international factors" that have "facilitated" the meetings with the United States. In a televised address, the Cuban president also explained that the FBI will travel to Cuba to investigate the incident from two weeks ago, in which Cuban forces killed four exiles aboard a speedboat registered in Florida that had entered the country's territorial waters.

The sanctions on Havana

In January, Trump intensified the decades-long US siege on the Caribbean nation. Emboldened after seizing control of Venezuela, the US president expanded sanctions on the island, cut off oil deliveries from Caracas to Havana, and threatened to impose tariffs on countries that supplied crude. The consequences? Constant blackouts that leave more than half the country in darkness. For example, this Friday, 61% of the island suffered a blackout at the peak of energy demand.

The siege has also impacted the tourism sector, one of Cuba's few remaining sources of income. The country has run out of fuel, and some airlines have canceled their flights to Havana. In mid-February, Mexico offered to provide an air bridge for airlines to refuel before arriving in Cuba. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum conditioned it on an explicit request from Havana, and so far there have been no updates on the matter.