He United States Department of Defense quietly intensified planning for possible military operations in Cubain case the president Donald Trump order to intervene on the island. The revelation, published this week by USA Today from anonymous sources, comes at a time when Beijing has already warned that it will support Havana against any external interferenceconfiguring a scenario of tension with geopolitical implications that transcend the Caribbean.
The pentagon responded to the American media with a statement in which he confirmed that Prepare a series of contingencies and remains ready to execute presidential orders. In parallel, two anonymous sources familiar with the matter revealed to the newspaper the existence of internal operational planning guidelines, the content of which the institution has not denied.
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Hours before, the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign AffairsGuo Jiakun stated that Beijing “firmly opposes coercive diplomacy” and will support Cuba in the defense of its sovereignty against any external interference.
In the same line, Hu Zhaomingspokesperson for Chinese Communist Party, demanded Washington “immediately” end the blockade, sanctions and any form of pressure on the island, and confirmed that Beijing will continue providing assistance to Havana “within their capabilities and in their own way.”
Tension escalation
The crisis between Washington and Havana It intensified since January, when US forces captured the then Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in Caracas – in that operation 32 Cuban soldiers who were guarding it died – and the administration Trump suspended oil shipments to Cuba from Venezueladepriving the island of its main source of crude oil. The measure unleashed an energy crisis in the nation of 9.6 million inhabitants, which had already suffered six years of unprecedented economic hardship.
Trump’s statements have progressively escalated. In February he stated that Washington could carry out a “friendly takeover” of Cuba. In March he maintained that he could “do whatever he wants with it,” and on April 13, from the White House, he suggested that His government could “pass through Cuba” once the conflict with Iran is over.
Cuban response
The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Anayansi Rodríguez Camejothis week ruled out negotiating the island political system or state leadershipbut recognized areas of possible dialogue such as the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime. Diaz-Canel had confirmed exploratory talks between the two capitals in March, describing them as an attempt to “find solutions through dialogue on bilateral differences.”
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In parallel, external support has begun to translate into energy support. Russia announced the shipment of a second ship with oil to the islandafter a first shipment was unloaded at the end of March, which helps cushion the impact of energy restrictions.
Internally, The Cuban government accelerated economic reforms: In April it opened agricultural marketing to the private sector – until then a state monopoly -, authorized joint ventures and allowed the diaspora to invest on the island, measures that analysts interpret as signs of flexibility in the face of the crisis.
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