Cuban FM denounces Trump's new military threat

HAVANA, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Friday denounced a new threat of military intervention against the Caribbean nation by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Two vintage cars run on a street in Havana, Cuba, Oct. 23, 2026. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Friday denounced a new threat of military intervention against the Caribbean nation by U.S. President Donald Trump. In a post on X, Rodriguez rejected "any threat regarding U.S. ambitions toward Cuba" in response to remarks by Trump, who said Friday that U.S. ships "will pass" Cuba on their way back from Iran. (Photo: Xinhua)

In a post on X, Rodriguez rejected "any threat regarding U.S. ambitions toward Cuba" in response to remarks by Trump, who said Friday that U.S. ships "will pass" Cuba on their way back from Iran.

"They'll raise up their hands. And then we're going to send (Secretary of State) Marco Rubio in to finish up the deal," Trump said at a campaign rally in Fort Myers, in the southern U.S. state of Florida. He said one of the ships would stop about 50 yards (about 46 meters) off the coast.

"On our shores there are beautiful beaches, but also diente de perro (a jagged coastal coral formation), inhospitable to those who arrive with hostile aims and a thirst for domination," Rodriguez wrote.

Rodriguez, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and other officials have denounced U.S. threats of military intervention, which have escalated since early 2026, and have defended the island's sovereignty and its right to self-defense.

In May, Trump said in Florida that the United States would be taking over Cuba "almost immediately."