May 4 (UPI) -- Cuba's Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces reinforced the island's tone of military readiness in a social media message Monday amid rising tensions with the United States.
The post, published on the agency's official account, cites a statement by late President Fidel Castro about the willingness to face war "with victory or death" and is accompanied by an image of an armed soldier.
The message also includes a warning that "war should not be provoked, but we will wage it if the enemy imposes it.
The posting was published amid a political and rhetorical confrontation between Havana and Washington and reflects the Cuban government's emphasis on a defensive posture in the face of what it describes as possible external aggression.
Tensions increased after Trump said during a Friday event in West Palm Beach, Fla., that the United States could "take control of Cuba almost immediately." He made those comments before a private audience in which he also mentioned the possibility of deploying military assets near the island.
