WASHINGTON: Aboard Air Force One, President Donald Trump said the US was beginning to talk with Cuban leaders as his administration is putting greater pressure on the communist-run island and cutting off key oil supplies.
The Republican president made the comment to reporters on Saturday night as he was flying to Florida. It comes in the wake of his moves in recent weeks to cut off supplies of oil from Venezuela and Mexico, which he suggested Saturday would force Cuba to the negotiating table.
His goals with Cuba remain unclear, but Trump has turned more of his attention toward the island after his administration in early January captured Venezuela's then-President Nicolas Maduro and has been more aggressive in confronting nations that are adversaries of the US.
Trump has predicted that the Cuban government is ready to fall.
He did not offer any details on Saturday about what level of outreach his administration has had with Cuba recently or when, but simply said, “We're starting to talk to Cuba.”
His recent moves to cut off its oil supplies have squeezed the island.
This past week, Trump signed an executive order to impose a tariff on any goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba. The move put pressure on Mexico, which Cuba became dependent on for oil after Trump halted oil shipments from Venezuela in the wake of Maduro's ouster.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum warned that it could cause a humanitarian crisis. She said on Friday that she would seek alternatives to continue helping Cuba.
“It doesn't have to be a humanitarian crisis. I think they probably would come to us and want to make a deal,” Trump said Saturday. “So Cuba would be free again.”
He predicted they would make some sort of deal with Cuba and said, "I think, you know, we'll be kind.”