Cuba expresses its readiness for dialogue with the United States and clarifies its conditions
In a notable development in the strained relations between Havana and Washington, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel announced his country's full readiness to open channels of dialogue with the United States, while stressing that this dialogue must be based on mutual respect and without any external dictates.
Conditions for dialogue and political parity
During a press conference broadcast on national television, Díaz-Canel explained that Cuba welcomes discussions on any outstanding issues with the United States, but within specific frameworks that guarantee the dignity of the Cuban state. The Cuban president stated clearly: "We are ready for dialogue, but what are the conditions? It must be without pressure and without preconditions." He added that any future negotiations must be conducted on an equal footing, with full respect for Cuba's sovereignty, independence, and the right of its people to self-determination, categorically rejecting any interference in the island's internal affairs.
Background to the tension: Oil and Venezuela
These statements come amid an unprecedented escalation of US pressure led by former President Donald Trump, who repeatedly threatened to cut off oil supplies to Cuba as punishment for its support of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Cuba and Venezuela share deep strategic ties, with Havana having relied for years on subsidized Venezuelan oil to power its power plants and prop up its struggling economy, making it a target of US sanctions aimed at crippling both regimes.
Economic crisis and power outages
Cuban society is experiencing widespread discontent due to a crippling economic crisis exacerbated by sanctions and a tightened embargo. This situation has directly impacted the energy sector, with the country suffering from frequent power outages. In a related development, large areas in the east of the country have experienced blackouts affecting hundreds of thousands of citizens, due to fuel shortages and technical malfunctions in the dilapidated power grid—a situation Washington is exploiting as further leverage.
A history of ebbs and flows in relations
To understand the depth of this statement, one must consider the historical context of relations between the two countries. After decades of estrangement and an economic embargo imposed by the United States since the 1960s, relations experienced a brief but historic thaw during the presidency of Barack Obama, who restored diplomatic ties. However, Trump's rise to power reset the situation, adopting a policy of "maximum pressure," which included activating legal provisions allowing lawsuits against foreign companies operating in Cuba and imposing strict restrictions on travel and financial transactions.
Observers believe that the Cuban president's call for dialogue represents an attempt to break the economic isolation, but it runs up against the wall of strict American conditions, making the future of relations dependent on broader geopolitical changes in the region.
