Rubio is linking Cuba sanctions to regime change amid an ongoing energy crisis

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that the US sanctions on Cuba are related to political change on the island, as the country faces blackouts, unrest and a growing economic crisis.

“Suffice it to say that the embargo is related to political change on the island,” Rubio told reporters at the White House. “The law, it’s written in code. Again, but the important thing is that their economy doesn’t work. An economy that doesn’t work. An economy that has survived. … That thing they have, survived with subsidies from the Soviet Union and now from Venezuela. They don’t get subsidies anymore. So they’re in big trouble. So the people in charge know how to fix it.”

Rubio’s comments come at a time when Cuba is facing a severe energy crisis that has fueled protests and instability.

The collapse of the country’s power grid has left about 10 million people without electricity, according to statements from the US Embassy and Cuban authorities.

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President Donald Trump has indicated that his administration is involved.

“Cuba is in a very bad situation right now. They’re talking to Marco,” Trump told reporters, “We’re going to do something with Cuba very soon. … we’re dealing with Cuba.”

Trump stepped up his anti-Cuba rhetoric on Monday, saying he expects the “glory” of “taking Cuba in one way or another” and that “I can do whatever I want” with the neighboring country.

A senior State Department official rejected allegations that U.S. sanctions were the cause of the humanitarian situation, saying, “Widespread power outages have sadly been the norm in Cuba for years — a sign of the regime’s failure to provide even basic goods and services to its people.”

“This is the sad result of more than 60 years of Communist rule,” added the official. “The island that was once the jewel of the Caribbean has fallen into deep poverty and darkness.

“As President Trump has said, what is left of the government is to make a deal and finally let the Cuban people be free and prosper, with the help of the United States,” the official told Fox News Digital.

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Protesters gather outside the headquarters of the Communist Party in Morón, Cuba, as a fire burns in the street amid overnight unrest. A video obtained by Fox News Digital appeared to show protesters trying to burn down a building amid protests related to widespread power outages. (Reuters)

Cuban human rights activist Rosa María Payá argued that the current crisis reflects a systemic collapse within the government, not external pressure.

“The closure of the regime is the collapse of the regime made visible: 65 years of dictatorship is finally taking its toll,” Payá told Fox News Digital. “The protests are for Cubans who don’t want to disappear into that darkness.”

He dismissed claims that US sanctions are creating a humanitarian crisis.

“Cubans are not suffering because of American policy,” he said. “They are suffering because of the dictatorship. The pressure on the government is working. What hurts the Cuban people is authoritarianism.”

“The only way to end the human tragedy is to end the regime,” Payá added. “That is the demand of the Cuban people.”

Recent blackouts and shortages have been linked to critical infrastructure failures, including the Antonio Guiteras thermal power plant, and fuel shortages following US actions to cut oil exports from Venezuela, one of Cuba’s main energy suppliers.

At the same time, Pentagon officials told lawmakers there were no plans to attack Cuba, citing long-standing security concerns.

Joseph Humire, who serves as the assistant secretary of defense for defense and security of the United States, said he was “not aware of the plans for Cuba” when asked during the hearing of the House Armed Services Committee on Tuesday.

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Riot police walk the streets after a protest against the government of President Miguel Diaz-Canel in the Municipality of Arroyo Naranjo, Havana, on July 12, 2021. (Yamil Lage/AFP)

He described Cuba as “one of the most powerful intelligence adversaries we’ve had in the United States,” adding that Cuban officials have worked throughout the region and “protected Nicolás Maduro… in Caracas” during past operations.

The Cuban government has blamed US sanctions for exacerbating the crisis, while US officials attribute it to decades of economic mismanagement and reliance on foreign aid.