Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel warned on Monday that any military intervention by the United States against the island nation would result in a “bloodbath,” signaling a sharp escalation in tensions between the historic adversaries following a new round of Washington sanctions.
The friction intensified after the United States Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on Cuba’s primary intelligence agency and several high-ranking officials. The punitive measures were triggered by growing American apprehensions regarding Havana’s purported military maneuvers.
The diplomatic fallout follows an Axios report alleging that Cuba has procured over 300 military drones from Russia and Iran. According to unnamed US intelligence officials cited in the report, Cuban authorities are reportedly assessing the viability of utilizing these unmanned aerial vehicles against American targets, including the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay, military vessels, and potential sites in Florida.
The developments have fueled intense speculation that Washington may be evaluating military strategies aimed at unseating Cuba’s communist administration.
Díaz-Canel turned to social media platform X, formerly Twitter, to reject the adversarial narrative, asserting that Cuba “poses no threat” to the United States or its neighbors, while firmly upholding the country’s sovereignty.
“trigger a bloodbath with incalculable consequences.”
(The Cuban leader warned that any American military offense would set off a catastrophic conflict.)
While the Cuban president circumvented a direct acknowledgment of the alleged drone stockpile, he fiercely guarded Havana’s military position.
“the absolute and legitimate right to defend itself against a military onslaught.”
(Cuba maintains total authority to safeguard its territory against foreign aggression.)
Echoing the presidency’s resolute stance, Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuba’s ambassador to the United Nations, delivered a similarly unyielding warning during a press briefing in New York.
“If someone tried to invade Cuba, Cuba will fight back, no doubt about it,” Soberón Guzmán told AFP.
“In the 60s, they (the US) tried to invade Cuba, and they were defeated. Of course, everybody can say this is a different situation. Yes, it is. But the will of the people of Cuba has not changed,” he added.