Trump says U.S. is starting to talk to Cuba amid oil cut pressure

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President Donald Trump said the United States is beginning to talk with Cuba’s leaders while his administration applies additional pressure on the communist-run island by cutting off key oil supplies, according to remarks he made to reporters. Trump made the comment Saturday night while flying to Florida aboard Air Force One, after moves in recent weeks that he suggested were intended to force Cuba “to the negotiating table,” the Associated Press reported.

Trump said the United States was “starting to talk to Cuba,” without detailing what level of outreach his administration had recently pursued or when it began. He did not provide additional information about the goals of the outreach beyond connecting it to his administration’s escalating oil pressure.

The Associated Press said Trump’s focus on Cuba intensified after his administration in early January captured Venezuela’s then-President Nicolás Maduro and later moved more aggressively against nations Trump described as adversaries of the United States. In that context, Trump predicted that Cuba’s government was ready to fall.

Trump also linked the Cuba pressure to actions that affected other regional oil suppliers. The Associated Press reported that his administration’s recent steps to cut off Cuba’s oil options squeezed the island, with Venezuela shipments halted after Maduro’s ouster and Cuba subsequently becoming dependent on oil from Mexico.

During the past week, Trump signed an executive order imposing a tariff on any goods from countries that sell or provide oil to Cuba, according to the Associated Press. The tariff move increased pressure on Mexico, the report said, because of Mexico’s role as a fuel supplier for Cuba after the Venezuela shipments stopped.

The Associated Press reported that Mexico responded to the tariff risk through President Claudia Sheinbaum, who warned it could cause a humanitarian crisis. Sheinbaum said she would seek alternatives so that Mexico could continue helping Cuba, the report said.

Trump told reporters Saturday that the situation did not have to become a humanitarian crisis and that he expected Mexico would come to the United States and seek a deal. He also said that he believed Cuba would ultimately be “free again,” predicting that “we’ll be kind,” while adding that he expected some sort of agreement would be reached with Cuba.