President Donald Trump on Sunday delivered a warning to Cuba, advising Havana to strike a deal “before it is too late.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the island nation would no longer receive oil or money from Venezuela.
“Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela,” Trump wrote. “In return, Cuba provided ‘Security Services’ for the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NOT ANYMORE!”
“THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO!” he continued. “I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.”
Trump turned his attention to Venezuela’s oil industry after the US captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in Caracas last week. Maduro has been indicted in the Southern District of New York on weapons and drug charges.
On Friday, American oil executives met with Trump and senior administration officials to discuss a proposed $100 billion plan to invest in Venezuela’s oil operations.
Trump earlier said the government may reimburse oil companies for growing their operations in Venezuela. The Big Oil executives at the meeting, for their part, appeared largely hesitant to reenter the volatile country before major reforms are made.
For Cuba, losing access to Venezuelan oil would be a big blow to its already uncertain economy. According to the US Energy Information Administration, Cuba imports the majority of its oil from Venezuela — about 30,000 to 35,000 barrels a day, per most estimates.
Speaking to reporters last week on board Air Force One, Trump said Cuba appeared “ready to fall.”
“I don’t know if they’re going to hold out,” he said. “But Cuba now has no income. They got all of their income from Venezuela, from the Venezuelan oil.”
Asked whether the US would take military action in Cuba, Trump said he did not think it would be necessary, adding: “I think it’s just going to fall.”
In his post on Truth Social, Trump also positioned the US as Venezuela’s protector moving forward, saying that most of the Cuban security personnel stationed in Caracas had been killed in the operation to seize Maduro.
The Cuban government announced that 32 of its nationals died during the US raid on the capital.
Read the full article here
