Madrid/US officials close to Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, alias The Crabgrandson of Raúl Castro, in Basseterre, capital of Saint Kitts and Nevis, where the Caribbean Community summit (Caricom). This is what they assured the Miami Herald “multiple sources with knowledge of the meeting” who requested anonymity to talk about the “delicate negotiations”.
According to these testimonies, El Cangrejo met with one of Rubio’s advisors at a hotel near the venue where the summit was held. It is not clear, adds the Herald“if Rubio himself, who attended the Caricom meeting and spoke with Caribbean leaders on Wednesdaymet with Rodríguez Castro.” The mere fact that “his team is in contact with Castro’s grandson,” says the American newspaper, “confirms that the Trump Administration considers him a key figure in the efforts of Cuba and the United States to promote reforms on the Island.”
The central theme of the conversations was, states the Herald“the possibility of gradually relaxing US sanctions in exchange for Cuban leaders implementing changes on the Island month by month.” A Caribbean diplomat confirmed to the Miami newspaper that in private meetings with them, on the sidelines of the summit, “Rubio made it clear that the talks with the Cuban Government were very advanced and that they did not want to do anything that would prolong the regime.” And he quotes him Herald: “He seemed pretty sure they were close to an agreement.” This, another source said, has not been closed yet.
The sources assured that a “more formal” meeting between officials of the Cuban Government and the US State Department was expected today.
Rodríguez Castro, reports the Heraldtraveled to San Cristóbal “with a Cuban protocol official” this Wednesday, the same day that the US Secretary of State arrived to participate in the Caricom summit. Likewise, the sources assured that a “more formal” meeting between officials of the Cuban Government and the US State Department was expected today.
Cuba has been a central topic of the summit, as can be seen from the note of the Herald. Thus, after meeting with Rubio, the president of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, stated that they had held “deliberate and focused conversations” on various issues, including Venezuela and the Island. “Dealing with Cuba is not a simple issue, but we are talking about a framework that Caricom could be part of, which would address the issue of Cuba and the necessary transitions for the Cuban people,” were the words quoted by the American newspaper.
The text also says that Rodríguez Castro met with other leaders during his stay in the Coral Building, next to the Marriott hotel, Caricom meeting place.
Asked at the press conference after his speech at the summit, Rubio did not deny even the information from the Herald nor that of Axioswhich already revealed on February 18 that the Secretary of State has been holding “secret conversations” with The Crab. In his publication, Axios He said that Washington considered Raúl Castro the true head of the regime, and that the main objective of the Trump Administration is that “the regime has to go.”
“I am not going to comment on any of the conversations we have had,” Rubio said. “Suffice it to say that the United States is always willing to speak with officials of any government who have information to share with us or views to share with the United States.”
“The reason things are so bad is because they have an economic model that does not exist, that does not work”
In his appearance before the media, he insisted on the main point of the Donald Trump Administration regarding changes on the Island: “The only way for Cuba to have a better future is by adopting a different economic model.”
Rubio blamed the economic and political model of the Cuban regime for the crisis facing the population, arguing: “The reason why things are so bad is because they have an economic model that does not exist, that does not work.”
After being asked if his country would intervene in any way in a possible transition, he stated: “If Cuba wants to make those drastic reforms that open space for both economic and ultimately political freedom for the people of Cuba, obviously the United States would love to see that, and it would be helpful.”
The Secretary of State also explicitly attacked the Cuban doctor export program, which for decades has been a key source of foreign currency for Havana. He described this scheme as a form of “human trafficking” and labor exploitation, maintaining that the doctors who participate “work under conditions in which they receive very little remuneration and have restrictions on their freedom of movement,” and that many countries that contract these services “are paying money to the Cuban regime that does not reach the professionals.”
As for the recent flexibility that allows exports of Venezuelan oil destined for the private sector in Cuba, emphasized the strict condition that these exports must not benefit the regime. Once again, he stressed that economic openness and political freedom are necessary conditions to alleviate the situation on the Island. As a threat, he warned that if it is proven that the fuels benefited by this measure reach state institutions, they will immediately establish sanctions.
The US Treasury Department published a guide this Wednesday indicating that licenses will be issued so that private companies can send oil of Venezuelan origin and its derivatives to Cuba for commercial and humanitarian use. The measure is part of the so-called SCP License Exception (Support for Cuban People) and is presented as a tool to alleviate the serious energy shortage on the Island.
The strict condition is that these new licenses will be granted only if the fuels are managed by entities and people in the Cuban private sector for commercial or humanitarian purposes, and never for the benefit of the Armed Forces, the intelligence services or the state institutions that support the Havana regime.
