Secretary of State Marco Rubio marked Cuba’s Independence Day on Wednesday with a sharply critical message blaming the island nation’s communist leadership for the country’s economic collapse and saying those in power are “the only thing standing in the way” of a better future for Cubans.In a video message released by the State Department on the anniversary of Cuba’s formal independence from Spain in 1902, Rubio accused the nation’s military-linked elite of enriching themselves while ordinary Cubans face rolling blackouts, food shortages, and economic hardship.“Currently, the only thing standing in the way of a better future are those who control your country,” Rubio said, addressing Cubans directly in Spanish. He argued that the country’s ongoing crisis was not caused by U.S. sanctions or an “oil blockade” but by corruption and mismanagement among Cuba’s ruling class.
Rubio, the first Cuban American to serve as secretary of state, specifically targeted a group known as GAESA, a sprawling military-run business conglomerate founded under former President Raul Castro.
Rubio said the company, which controls much of Cuba’s economy, has failed to invest in the country’s deteriorating infrastructure while profiting from hotels, remittances, and banking.
