Cuba Responds to Trump and Rubio: Rejects Threats and Criticizes CIA Offer

Cuba responds to Trump and Rubio with a public rejection of what Havana describes as US ambitions of domination. The reaction comes after a campaign event in Fort Myers that we covered, in which Trump said US ships will pass by Cuba, and after a message from Marco Rubio directed at those seeking change on the island.

• Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez rejected «any threat» and warned that the Cuban coast has «diente de perro» (a coral reef with sharp rocks).
• President Miguel Díaz-Canel stated that the US «does not renounce its domination ambitions».
• Vice Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío mocked the offer and later called the CIA «a state terrorism organization».

Why it Matters: Havana responds in unison, with its foreign minister, president, and vice foreign minister, at a time of fuel shortages and blackouts on the island, and with no negotiations in sight.

What Washington Offered

On Friday, October 23, Rubio wrote on X: «For those seeking to generate positive change in Cuba, this is the moment,» and invited them to «discreet collaboration with the CIA». Afterward, the agency disseminated a message in Spanish with a video and instructions to contact it «safely», according to La Jornada and CBS News. It asks to visit a US official facility if possible; if not, to use a VPN not based in Cuba, Russia, Iran, or China, and to erase any traces.

The Foreign Minister: «Diente de Perro»

Bruno Rodríguez responded on X: «We reject any threat regarding US ambitions towards Cuba. On our coasts, there are beautiful beaches, but also ‘diente de perro’, inhospitable to those who arrive with hostile intentions and domination desires.» The «diente de perro» refers to the sharp coral reef typical of the Cuban coastline. He closed with the hashtags #CubaNoEsUnaAmenaza (Cuba is not a threat) and «El Bloqueo Sí» (The blockade yes).

Díaz-Canel: Independence since 1959

The president wrote on X: «The US government makes it clear that it does not renounce its domination ambitions over Cuba». He added that «Cubans achieved our true independence on January 1, 1959, and we are determined to defend it».

Fernández de Cossío: Criticisms of the CIA

The vice minister wrote on X, according to EFE: «Now the US is resorting to public CIA recruitment. There must be much desperation or poverty in the agency’s ranks when it has to sell its offerings like toothpaste.»

Later, he expanded his response in a lengthy Facebook post, which Cuban state media disseminated on Saturday, October 24, according to EFE. There, he called the CIA «a state terrorism organization» with a «dirty record» and recalled that in the 1970s, a US Senate committee investigated «the excesses, law violations, abuses, and crimes of the CIA». According to his text, this uncovered «assassination operations, kidnappings, tortures, coups, and government destabilization» efforts.

The Context

The Trump administration claims its goal is a change of government in Cuba. Since January, there has been a petroleum embargo, following the US capture of Nicolás Maduro. In March, both governments acknowledged high-level contacts but saw no visible results, according to EFE. On Monday, October 19, Florida announced an arrest warrant against Raúl Castro for the downing of the Brothers to the Rescue planes in 1996.

What’s Next

Neither Washington nor Havana has announced negotiations, and there is no officially announced naval operation. Rubio also did not explain what the proposed «collaboration» entails.

Sources: EFE, via Infobae; CNN en Español; DW; La Jornada; CBS News. Data consulted on October 24, 2026.

Main photo: EFE/Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan.