Wednesday, March, 18 2026 - Russia has reacted to remarks by President Donald Trump suggesting he could “take” the island nation of Cuba.
The Cuban Ministry of Energy and Mines posted on social
media on March 16 that its National Electric System (SEN) suffered a “total
disconnection,” without providing details as to the cause of the electrical
grid collapse or how long until all of the country’s 10 million inhabitants are
expected to have power again.
The blackout became the third major one in the country over
the past four months.
Trump, whose Administration has reportedly been working to
remove Cuba’s current leader, President Miguel Díaz-Canel (pictures top right),
has suggested that he will turn his attention to Cuba next once the conflict
with Iran is resolved.Trump has already forced at least two major regime
changes this year: killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei late
last month amid U.S.-Israeli joint military operations, after capturing
Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro in a daring military operation in early
January, the latter of which exacerbated Havana’s current crisis.
“I think Cuba is seeing the end,” Trump told reporters in
the Oval Office on March 16, adding that he believes he’ll have the “honor” of
“taking” the country. “They’re a very weakened nation right now.”
Efforts are underway to restore power, but such electrical
grid collapses have become more common in Cuba, which has been, for decades,
ravaged by an economic crisis that has seen acute shortages of food, fuel, and
electricity. The situation has been aggravated by longstanding sanctions from
the U.S., in a bid to topple Cuba’s communist regime.
In a statement on Tuesday, March 17, Russia said it stands
in “unwavering solidarity” with the Cuban government and its people, while
condemning what it described as interference in the affairs of a sovereign
state.
Without mentioning Trump directly, Russia’s foreign ministry
warned against intimidation and unilateral sanctions.The reaction came after
Trump said he expected to have the “honour of taking Cuba” and claimed he could
“do anything” he wanted with the communist-run country.
Moscow said it remains in contact with Cuban leadership and
is ready to provide support, including financial assistance, as the island
faces mounting economic and energy challenges.
According to Russian officials, Cuba is dealing with
“unprecedented” difficulties caused by long-standing U.S. sanctions and a
recent energy embargo, which has worsened the country’s already fragile power
system.
Reports also suggest that Washington is pushing for
political changes in Havana, including the possible removal of Cuban President
Miguel Díaz-Canel, although no official confirmation has been made.
For decades, Cuba has been run by the Castros, first led by
the infamous revolutionary Fidel Castro, who ousted a U.S.-backed regime in
Havana in 1959 and allied with the then-Soviet Union to establish Cuba as a
socialist state.
Before Fidel Castro died in 2016, he handed the presidency
over to his brother Raúl, who led the country as the Communist Party’s First
Secretary until 2021.
Even as Raúl Castro stepped down in 2018 to make way for
incumbent President Díaz-Canel, he and other Castro family members remain key
figures in Cuban politics.
Cuba and Russia have maintained close ties since the 1959
revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power, and Moscow has continued to
support the island in recent years through financing and material aid.
The latest developments signal rising tensions between
global powers, with Russia backing Cuba while the United States increases
pressure on the Caribbean nation.
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