The Cuban government said on Wednesday that its coast guard killed four people who opened fire from a US-registered speedboat that entered Cuba’s territorial waters, an incident that comes amid a ramped-up US oil embargo on the country that’s meant to bring about regime change.
The Cuban Interior Ministry said in a statement that the vessel approached within one nautical mile northeast of the El Pino channel north of Corralillo, a town in the central Cuban province of Villa Clara. As the Cuban coast guard vessel approached, the Interior Ministry said the people on the foreign boat opened fire, injuring the commander of the Cuban boat.
“As a result of the confrontation, at the time of this report, on the foreign side, four aggressors were killed, and six were injured, who were evacuated and received medical assistance,” the statement said.
The ministry said the boat was registered in Florida, just 90 miles from Cuba. So far, there’s been no comment from the US about the incident.
The Trump administration recently cut off Venezuelan oil shipments to Cuba and pressured Mexico to end its oil exports, causing severe fuel shortages in the country. Last week, President Trump boasted of the impact his embargo is having on Cuba.
“Cuba is right now a failed nation, and they don’t even have jet fuel for airplanes to take off, clogging up their runway,” he said, adding that he wanted a “deal” with Cuba, but in the meantime, “there’s an embargo. There’s no oil, there’s no money, there’s no anything.”
It’s unclear what sort of “deal” President Trump wants with Cuba, and whether talks between Washington and Havana are underway. Drop Site News recently reported that Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been blocking negotiations with Cuba while telling President Trump they were ongoing, while Axios reported that Rubio has held some talks with the grandson of Raul Castro.
