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Donald Trump says his foreign policy puts U.S. interests first. Yet on Cuba, he’s clinging to a game plan his own playbook says undermines those very interests.
Belly of the Beast journalist Reed Lindsay breaks down this contradiction in a recent article for The American Conservative (see more below).
Also:
- Want “a Deal”? Then Why Did You Torch the Last One?
- Music Lovers Flock to Cuba for Jazz Festival
- Rubio: No End to Embargo Without Regime Change
- A Total Blockade on Oil to Cuba?
- Thousands in Havana Honor José Martí
- Fidel’s Grandson: "Doctors, Not Bombs"
- Cuba Continues Military Drills
- Hialeah Cracks Down on Cuba-Linked Businesses
- Supreme Court to Hear Cuba Property Claims
An "America First" Case for Ending the Embargo
In a recent article for The American Conservative, Belly of the Beast’s Reed Lindsay shows how current Cuba policy contradicts the principles and goals laid out in Trump’s own National Security Strategy.
“Current Cuba policy is rooted not in our core national interests, but in Cold War nostalgia and Florida politics. These have stymied the recalibration explicitly called for in the Trump administration’s National Security Strategy,” writes Lindsay. “A 180-degree shift toward engagement is not a concession or a gamble — it is the most coherent way to bring U.S. policy toward Cuba into alignment with the administration’s strategic vision for the hemisphere.”
Read the full article here
Want “a Deal”? Then Why Did You Torch the Last One?
Donald Trump has threatened the Cuban government that it better make a deal with the United States “before it is too late.” But Cuba and the U.S. already had a deal 10 years ago — before Trump scrapped it.
In December 2014, Raúl Castro and Barack Obama announced a historic thaw in relations after more than half a century of hostility. Within months, the two governments formally restored diplomatic relations and reopened embassies in Havana and Washington. Two dozen cooperation agreements were signed on everything from counternarcotics to environmental protection. As Obama began loosening restrictions on travel and other forms of engagement, U.S. companies and visitors flocked to Cuba.
At the time, even Trump backed the idea of reconciliation. In a 2016 Republican primary debate that included then Senator Marco Rubio, Trump criticized Obama for not getting a "better deal,” but said “the concept of opening Cuba is fine.” This came as no surprise since Trump Organization executives had quietly visited Cuba on multiple occasions. In 2008, Trump registered his brand in Cuba for possible investments in hotels, casinos, golf courses and beauty contests. (For more on Trump's interest in doing business on the island, watch Episode One of The War on Cuba)
What changed? Not long after the primary debate, Trump cut a deal — not with Cuba, but with Rubio.
Belly of the Beast’s Liz Oliva Fernández looks at how the historic opening unraveled, how Trump reversed course once in office and how Rubio reshaped Cuba policy.
Watch the video
Music Lovers Flock to Cuba for Jazz Festival
Jazz Plaza is happening in Cuba this week, and Belly of the Beast is providing on-the-ground coverage. The festival is more than just concerts. It’s a space for exchange and collaboration where music becomes a form of dialogue and resilience amid increasing external threats and a deepening economic crisis.
For over four decades, the festival has attracted artists from all over the world. But this year’s festival is the first to expand to four Cuban cities — not only Havana and Santiago but also Santa Clara and Holguín — bringing Cuban and international musicians to theaters, streets and public spaces across the country.
Watch the first in our series of Jazz Plaza videos
Rubio: No End to Embargo Without Regime Change
Speaking yesterday at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on U.S. policy toward Venezuela, Rubio said the United States would “love to see” a change of government in Cuba and that such an outcome would benefit U.S. interests.
Pressed by Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI), Rubio claimed the 1996 Helms-Burton Act codified the embargo and explicitly conditions its removal on political "transition" in Havana.
But the idea that the president’s hands are tied by Congress has been disputed by at least one legal expert.
To end the embargo, the president could “simply declare it terminated and issue the executive orders necessary to resume trade and investment with Cuba,” according to Robert Muse, a lawyer who specializes in U.S. sanctions. Alternatively, the president could "let the embargo die through non-extension” in September 2026 by declining to renew the Trading with the Enemy Act, a wartime provision that serves as one of the primary legal underpinnings for U.S. sanctions on Cuba.
Watch the exchange between Schatz and Rubio
A Total Blockade on Oil to Cuba?
The Trump administration is reportedly considering a naval blockade on oil imports to Cuba as a new avenue for forcing regime change, according to a recent article in Politico. The report is based entirely on anonymous sources who said a decision has not been made about whether to enact the blockade. “Energy is the chokehold to kill the regime,” one said.
Trump told reporters on Tuesday Cuba is no longer receiving oil from Venezuela, and that the government “will be failing pretty soon.”
China and Russia have publicly voiced opposition to the potential blockade. Russia is one of Cuba’s few remaining petroleum suppliers.
Even if Trump doesn’t impose a naval blockade — which would amount to a war crime — he could still intensify a de facto blockade already in place by pressuring or coercing other countries to halt shipments.
There have been reports that Trump is ratcheting up pressure on Mexico to stop shipping oil to Cuba.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum indicated last week that Mexico would continue to support Cuba in the face of the U.S. government’s “extreme blockade.”
But on Monday, news broke that Pemex, Mexico’s state oil company, had removed a planned crude oil shipment to Cuba from its schedule without explanation.
In her daily press conferences on Tuesday and Wednesday, Sheinbaum did not confirm or deny whether a shipment had been stopped.
“Humanitarian aid to Cuba continues, as it does to other countries because it’s humanitarian aid,” she said on Wednesday. “These are sovereign decisions.”
Mexico surpassed Venezuela in 2025 as Cuba’s main oil supplier. It’s not clear how the island is getting oil now, but fuel shortages appear to be getting more severe. In recent weeks, power outages in Havana have increased to upwards of 12 hours a day. They are even worse in other parts of the country.
Thousands in Havana Honor José Martí
On Tuesday, university students and other young Cubans celebrated the March of the Torches, an annual event held on the eve of José Martí’s birthday to celebrate the legacy of the national hero and poet. Thousands gathered on the steps of the University of Havana and carried handmade torches as they marched to commemorate Martí and reject U.S. imperialism. This year’s march also recognized the centennial of the birth of Fidel Castro.
Fidel’s Grandson: "Doctors, Not Bombs"
Dr. Fidel Antonio Castro Smirnov, a scientist and grandson of Fidel Castro, visited Britain’s Palace of Westminster, where he met with members of Parliament, including Jeremy Corbyn. Castro Smirnov, who's currently on a speaking tour to celebrate the centennial of Fidel’s birth, spoke about Cuba’s achievements in healthcare and science and the challenges the island has faced due to the extraterritorial reach of U.S. sanctions. He asked: "Does it make sense, in the 21st century, for a British bank to refuse a transfer in pounds sterling for medical supplies destined for children in Havana, simply for fear of a fine [by the U.S.]?"
Cuba Continues Military Drills
On Saturday, President Miguel Díaz-Canel supervised military exercises in Cuba. This came after Cuba’s National Defense Council on January 17 reviewed plans for Cuba to enter a “state of war.” The review happens annually, but this year, following U.S. threats to Cuba in the wake of Nicolás Maduro’s abduction, the Defense Council updated its plans. Earlier this month, Cuba celebrated National Defense Day, during which civilians were trained how to operate rifles, machine guns and rocket launchers.
Hialeah Cracks Down on Cuba-Linked Businesses
Bryan Calvo, the new mayor of Hialeah, a city in the Miami area with the highest proportion of Cuban and Cuban-American residents in the U.S., has threatened to revoke the business licenses for companies that are exporting to Cuba. Calvo said nearly 300 businesses had already been flagged. Miami politicians have a history of trying to grab headlines and score points with the hardliners that dominate local and state politics at the expense of their own constituents. In a 2024 Florida International University poll, Cuba policies ranked behind issues like the economy, healthcare and immigration in order of importance for Cuban Americans in South Florida. Policies toward Cuba mattered even less to them than policies toward Russia and China.
Supreme Court to Hear Cuba Property Claims
Check out Blake Burdge's latest article in Jacobin, which looks at how two pending cases before the Supreme Court could “extend U.S. law beyond its borders to retroactively punish a foreign revolution — and deliver the spoils to profiteers.” The Court is set to hear the cases — one brought by ExxonMobil and the other by the descendants of a telecommunications tycoon with ties to Nazi Germany — on February 23. The cases were made possible when, in 2019, Trump activated Title III of the Helms-Burton Act. Title III, which had never been activated before, allows U.S. claimants whose property was nationalized during the Cuban Revolution to sue companies for doing business on that property. If you haven’t yet, read our investigative article “Billboards and Backchannels” that exposed the lobbying campaign behind Title III’s implementation.
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