New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has expressed his intensions to takeover Cuba, even as the war with Iran rages. He had carried out military takeover of Venezuela some time back. Now, it is the communist island that he is apparently targeting.
On Monday, at a press briefing, Trump voiced his plans in public. He said he may takeover Cuba after it suffered a complete blackout because of a US-imposed oil blockade.
What did Trump say
Speaking to reporters at the White House, the US President said: “I do believe I’ll be having the honour of taking Cuba. I think that’s a big honour. Taking Cuba in some form.”
He added: “Whether I free it, take it — think I could do anything I want with it, you want to know the truth. They’re a very weakened nation right now.”
The remarks came after Cuba plunged into darkness as its electric grid collapsed on Monday after weeks of oil embargo imposed by the US. There was no immediate reaction from Havana on Trump’s comments.
Trump on Cuba:
I do believe I’ll have the honor of taking Cuba. That would be good. That’s a big honor.
I can free it or take it, I think I can do anything I want with it. pic.twitter.com/I0TpVCY73j
— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 16, 2026
How is the power situation in Cuba
Union Nacional Electrica de Cuba (UNE), the state-owned company, has assured citizens that it was working to restore electricity flows. On X, the Ministry of Energy and Mines said there was a “complete disconnection” of the country’s electrical system. It added that it was probing the situation and noted there were no failures in the units that were operating when the grid collapsed.
As per state media reports, the power personnel had restored power to 5 percent of Havana’s residents, and a number of hospitals across the country. Officials said the communications sector would be the next priority area, while cautioning that there’s a possibility that the limited circuits restored till now could go down yet again.
The recent background is the third major blackout in Cuba in the past four months. Earlier in March, a blackout crippled two-thirds of Cuba. In early December, a major blackout hit the western part of the country.
Cuba has a population of 9.6 million and the government has been grappling with fuel shortage for some time now. Last week, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said the country hasn’t received a major fuel shipment in three months due to a US embargo. Not a single drop of oil has been imported to Cuba since January 9 this year.
How US is putting pressure on Cuba
For some time now, the Trump administration has been using the embargo to increase its economic reliance on the US, apparently to spark political change after 67 years of single-party rule. There was a protest over the weekend, in which the demonstrators torched a Communist Party office.
According to a report in The New York Times, which cited sources, the Trump administration is planning to unseat the Cuban President. Trump has justified the fuel blockade as the US faces an “extraordinary threat” from Cuba. The US President had earlier claimed that Cuba wanted to strike a “deal”.