‘We’re talking to Cuba, but we’re going to do Iran before Cuba,’ Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on March 15 that the United States is in talks with Cuba and expects to reach a deal with the communist-ruled country soon.
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that “something will happen with Cuba pretty quickly,” and that Washington will decide on Cuba after dealing with the war in Iran.
Trump on Jan. 11 told Cuba to strike a deal after U.S. forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in a Jan. 3 operation. Cuba has long been a close ally of Maduro’s regime and has relied on Venezuela’s oil supply for decades.
After Maduro’s ouster, interim Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodríguez redirected oil deliveries to the United States.
“Cuba also wants to make a deal, and I think we will pretty soon either make a deal or do whatever we have to do,” Trump told reporters on March 15. “And so, we’re talking to Cuba, but we’re going to do Iran before Cuba.”
On Jan. 29, Trump signed an executive order imposing tariffs on any country that “directly or indirectly provides oil to Cuba,” a move that exacerbated fuel shortages in the Caribbean island nation.
In his order, Trump accused the Cuban regime of aligning itself with “hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors,” including Russia, China, and Iran, as well as U.S.-designated foreign terrorist groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez said on March 13 that his government has been negotiating with U.S. officials to identify and resolve any bilateral issues between the two nations.
“These conversations have been aimed at seeking solutions, through dialogue, to bilateral differences that exist between the two nations,” Bermúdez said, according to a statement posted by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla on social media. “There are international factors that have facilitated these exchanges.”
Bermúdez said his officials have expressed that negotiations must be held “on the basis of equality and respect for the political systems of both states,” as well as their sovereignty.
“This is a matter that unfolds as part of a very sensitive process that is conducted with seriousness and responsibility, as it affects the bilateral relations between the two nations and requires enormous efforts to find solutions and create spaces for understanding that allow us to move away from confrontation,” he said.
Trump said last week that Cuba currently faces severe humanitarian challenges amid disruptions in imported oil and is eager to negotiate with the United States. He also said there could be a “friendly takeover” of the nation, but also said that “it may not be a friendly takeover.”
