President Donald Trump says Cuba is on the brink of collapse and the U.S. may be “taking” the island nation.
Trump, speaking to reporters Monday at the White House, issued what seemed like a cryptic warning to the communist leadership of Cuba as the country was gripped by an island-wide power outage amid a deepening economic crisis.
The president said he believes he will have “the honor of taking Cuba,” and added he “can do anything I want with” the country, which has been running out of fuel after the U.S. forced Venezuela to end its critical support to the Caribbean island.
“I think Cuba sees the end,” he said. “All my life I’ve been hearing about the United States and Cuba. When will the United States do it? I do believe I’ll be the honor of — having the honor of taking Cuba.”
Asked to elaborate on what he meant by “taking” Cuba, which has been controlled by the current communist regime since 1959, Trump indicated the U.S. would intervene “in some form.”
“Whether I free it, take it — I think I can do anything I want with it, you want to know the truth. They’re a very weakened nation right now,” he said.
The comments mark a more foreboding tone shift from the president, who said on Friday that a “friendly takeover” of Cuba could be possible.
The U.S. has placed renewed pressure on Cuba in January when it launched an operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, setting off the most severe economic crisis on the island since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Cuba had heavily relied on Venezuela for fuel imports before Maduro’s removal. Trump told POLITICO’s Dasha Burns earlier in March the U.S. is “talking to Cuba” and that he believed intervening in Venezuela would put further strain on Cuba.
“It’s because of my intervention, intervention that is happening,” Trump said. “Obviously, otherwise they wouldn’t have this problem. We cut off all oil, all money, … everything coming in from Venezuela, which was the sole source.”
Cuban-American activists have encouraged Trump to put pressure on the communist government in hopes of triggering a change in leadership.