People carry containers of water past the Capitol in Havana, May 27. [AP/YONHAP]
The top U.S. commander in Latin America met with Cuban military leaders on Friday in a “brief exchange on operational security matters” near the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, the latest official to visit the island nation as President Donald Trump ramps up pressure on its leaders.
Trump has warned that Cuba “is next” after U.S. military forces captured Venezuela's autocratic leader Nicolas Maduro in a January raid. In recent months, the Trump administration has imposed an oil blockade, maintained warships in the Caribbean Sea and indicted a former Cuban leader on federal charges.
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Top Trump aides, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and CIA chief John Ratcliffe, have met with Cuban officials to explore possible improvements in relations. But the U.S. side has come away unimpressed from those talks, leading to even more sanctions imposed on the Cuban government.
