The top U.S. commander in Latin America met with Cuban military leaders on Friday in a brief exchange regarding operational security matters near the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay. This meeting marks the latest official visit to the island nation as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on its leaders.
Context of the Meeting
President Trump has warned that Cuba is next after U.S. military forces captured Venezuela's autocratic leader, Nicolás Maduro, in a January raid. Since then, the Trump administration has imposed an oil blockade on Cuba, maintained warships in the Caribbean Sea, and indicted former Cuban President Raúl Castro on federal charges.
Details of the Exchange
Gen. Francis Donovan, head of U.S. Southern Command, met with Lt. Gen. Roberto Legrá Sotolongo and other Cuban military officials. Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces stated that both sides viewed the meeting positively, as it addressed security issues along the perimeter separating the military enclave. They agreed to maintain communication between the two military commands.
Top Trump aides, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and CIA chief John Ratcliffe, have also met with Cuban officials to explore possible improvements in relations. However, the U.S. side has come away unimpressed from those talks, leading to even more sanctions imposed on the Cuban government.
Assessment of Guantanamo Bay Base
Besides the meeting, Donovan assessed the security of the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay and discussed the safety of service members and their families, as well as operational readiness with base officials, according to U.S. Southern Command. The U.S. maintains the base despite decades of friction with Cuba's socialist leaders, whom Trump wants removed from power.
The U.S. military has a handful of Navy ships, including at least one amphibious assault ship, in the Caribbean. This force is much smaller than the one present at the time of the Maduro raid. On Friday, the Pentagon announced that a new unit of 1,300 sailors and Marines would replace the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, which deployed to the region last summer.
Associated Press writer Andrea Rodríguez in Havana contributed to this report.
