MIAMI, United States. – Washington called on the Cuban regime this Wednesday to undertake “very drastic changes and very soon,” amid increased pressure on the island’s regime. The demand was made publicly by White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt during a press conference in Washington.
“It is a regime that is collapsing. The country is collapsing and we believe that what is best for them is to make very drastic changes and very soon,” Leavitt said. The spokesperson for the President of the United States, Donald Trump, avoided confirming whether there are contacts between the Secretary of State and figures of Cuban power and did not specify whether the objective of US pressure is to promote a change of regime.
Likewise, he noted that Washington aspires to see prosperous democracies “around the world, and especially in America,” but he declined to detail the specific steps that the Administration is contemplating.
PRESS SEC: Ace @POTUS and @SecRubio have said, we want to see flourishing democracies in our own hemisphere.
Cuba has a regime that is falling. Their country is collapsing. That’s why we believe it’s in their best interest to make very dramatic changes. pic.twitter.com/z6N5rAiiw1
— Department of State (@StateDept) February 18, 2026
According to the American publication Axiosthe Secretary of State, Marco RubioI would be having conversations with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castrograndson of Raúl Castro known as “El Cangrejo”. According to this medium, the exchanges take place outside the official channels of the Cuban Government.
Axios maintains that the Trump Administration considers Rodríguez Castro, 41, and his entourage as exponents of a less ideological and more business-oriented generation, which could see benefits in a relationship with the United States.
The aforementioned media includes statements from a senior Administration official who clarifies the nature of these contacts: “I wouldn’t call them negotiations so much as ‘debates’ about the future.” The same source adds: “Our position—the position of the United States Government—is that the regime has to go.” And he specifies: “But exactly what form that will take is something that will depend on him.” [Donald Trump] and you still have to decide. “Rubio is still in talks with the grandson.”
According to AxiosRubio has not spoken with the Cuban ruler, Miguel Díaz-Canel, or with other senior officials of the regime. The publication describes the exchanges between the Secretary of State and Rodríguez Castro as “surprisingly friendly,” favored by their shared accent and culture, and assures that “there are no political disputes about the past.”
So far, the Cuban authorities have only acknowledged the existence of contacts of a technical nature, but have denied that negotiations are taking place between both governments. In previous weeks, US media reported on alleged conversations in Mexico between Washington and Alejandro Castro Espínson of Raúl Castro, although these versions have not been officially confirmed.
US pressure on Cuba intensified after the January 3 operation in Venezuela, in which dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured. Since then, Trump has reiterated that Havana will not be able to sustain itself without the support of its main ally and has urged the Cuban regime to “reach an agreement” with Washington. He has also threatened to impose sanctions on countries that supply oil to the Island.
