Trump says US will take over Cuba ‘almost immediately’ after Iran

President Donald Trump announced on Friday that the United States will take over Cuba “almost immediately,” proposing that an aircraft carrier returning from the Iran conflict could be positioned offshore to force the island nation into submission. Speaking at an event in Florida, Trump said: “Cuba, which we will be taking over almost immediately,” adding that “Cubans got problems.” He indicated that on the return voyage from the US-Israeli war on Iran, Washington would deploy a naval vessel—possibly the USS Abraham Lincoln, “the biggest in the world”—and anchor it about 100 yards from the Cuban coast. He claimed the show of force alone would make Cuba surrender, saying: “They’ll say ‘thank you very much. We give up.’”

New sanctions on Cuba

Trump also signed an executive order on Friday imposing fresh sanctions on individuals and entities linked to Cuba, citing threats to US national security and foreign policy. He repeatedly stated that Cuba is “next” after the military operation against Iran and that the Caribbean nation will fail “soon.” The comments mark a dramatic escalation in rhetoric against Cuba, which has been under a US embargo for decades. The proposal to deploy an aircraft carrier to force regime change would represent a major military intervention in the Western Hemisphere.