Secretary Of State Marco Rubio Delivers Urgent Message In Spanish To Cuban Citizens

Secretary of State Marco Rubio showcased his Spanish-speaking abilities in his latest video on X.

In an urgent message directed to the citizens of Cuba, Rubio explained to the Cuban people why they currently have no electricity for 22 hours a day.

The Secretary of State, while speaking in Spanish, shared that the Communist Cuban government’s misuse of funds and corruption has led to Cuba having constant blackouts.

He then shared that President Trump is “offering a new relationship between the U.S. and Cuba.”

The New York Times provided more details on Rubio’s message to the Cuban people:

Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a rare direct appeal to the Cuban people in a video posted on Wednesday, the anniversary of their independence from Spain and U.S. military occupation, urging them to align with the Trump administration as it seeks to weaken the Cuban regime.

“President Trump is offering a new path between the U.S. and a new Cuba,” Mr. Rubio said in the brief video address, which was reported on Wednesday by Axios before it was posted.

In the address, which was in Spanish with English subtitles and posted on the State Department’s YouTube channel Wednesday morning, Mr. Rubio mentions the former Cuban leader, Raúl Castro, around the one-minute mark. Mr. Castro, who also served as defense minister, is expected to be indicted by the Justice Department on Wednesday for having ordered the shooting down of two civilian planes in 1996. Four people were killed.

Mr. Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants who has been fixated on Cuba for decades, blamed the country’s longstanding electricity and resource shortages on Mr. Castro and GAESA, the military-run conglomerate that controls most aspects of the country’s economy.

“The reason you are forced to survive 22 hours a day without electricity is not due to an oil blockade by the U.S.,” Mr. Rubio said in Spanish. “The real reason you don’t have electricity, fuel or food is because those who control your country have plundered billions of dollars, but nothing has been used to help the people.”

Watch Rubio deliver his remarks in Spanish below:

(Don’t worry if you don’t know Spanish, the Secretary of State provided captions.)

🇺🇸🇨🇺 pic.twitter.com/nwEePVJ1lX

— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) May 20, 2026

Rubio’s message comes as tensions between the United States and Cuba have reached levels not seen since the Cuban Missile Crisis.

On Monday, The Hill reported that Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel warned a bloodbath would occur if the United States conducted military operations in Cuba:

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on Monday warned of a “bloodbath” if the U.S. were to attack the island country, after Axios reported that Cuba has more than 300 military drones with discussed plans to use them to strike the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay or Key West, Fla.

Axios cited classified intelligence that showed Cuba’s drone buildup could attack these sites, along with U.S. military vessels. One unnamed senior U.S. official told the outlet that the buildup is a “growing threat.”

“The threats of military aggression against Cuba from the world’s greatest power are well-known,” Díaz-Canel wrote on the social platform X in a post translated from Spanish. “The threat itself already constitutes an international crime. If it were to materialize, it would trigger a bloodbath with incalculable consequences, plus the destructive impact on regional peace and stability.”

The president said Cuba poses no threat to the U.S. “nor does it have aggressive plans or intentions against any country.” He said the U.S. government knows this “full well,” but noted that his country has the right to defend itself “against a military onslaught.”

“Yet that cannot be wielded, either logically or honestly, as an excuse for imposing war on the noble Cuban people,” Díaz-Canel’s post concludes.

President Trump, on multiple occasions, has shared that the United States will soon take over Cuba:

🚨New: President Trump speaks about Cuba:

“Maybe we’ll have a friendly takeover of Cuba. We could very well end up having a friendly takeover of Cuba.” pic.twitter.com/a1uIbH5RKE

— The Calvin Coolidge Project (@TheCalvinCooli1) February 27, 2026

JUST IN: 🇨🇺 PRESIDENT TRUMP announces that the United States will be taking control of Cuba almost immediately. pic.twitter.com/wtGLOIx66e

— Donald J Trump Posts TruthSocial (@TruthTrumpPost) May 2, 2026

What are your thoughts?