HAVANA (AP) — Cuba has held talks with the U.S. government, President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Friday, marking the first time that the Caribbean country has confirmed such speculation as it grapples with a severe energy crisis.
Díaz-Canel said the talks “were aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences between our two nations. International factors facilitated these exchanges.” He did not elaborate on those factors, or provide any details about the talks.
Asked for comment on Friday, the White House pointed to public comments by U.S. President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly alluded to discussions with Cuba and prodded the nation toward a deal, particularly to avoid a similar fate that Venezuela faced.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and senior aides met in the Caribbean at the end of February with the grandson of retired Cuban leader Raul Castro, two U.S. officials said Friday shortly after Díaz-Canel spoke.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the discussions, said that Rubio had met secretly with Raúl Guillermo Rodriguez Castro on the sidelines of a Caribbean Community leaders meeting in St. Kitts and Nevis.
