The Trump administration is reportedly considering a naval blockade of Cuba.
According to Politico, Trump officials are weighing their options as they seek to drive regime change on the communist island for the first time in nearly 70 years.
After the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, the Cuban regime is weaker than ever due to a cut-off in vital oil supplies from their socialist Caribbean ally.
Their report states:
The Trump administration is weighing new tactics to drive regime change in Cuba, including imposing a total blockade on oil imports to the Caribbean country, three people familiar with the plan said Thursday.
That escalation has been sought by some critics of the Cuban government in the administration and backed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to two of the three people, who were granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive discussions.
No decision has been made on whether to approve that move, but it could be among the suite of possible actions presented to President Donald Trump to force the end of Cuba’s communist government, these people added.
Preventing shipments of crude oil to the island would be a step-up from Trump’s statement last week that the U.S. would halt Cuba’s imports of oil from Venezuela, which had been its main crude supplier.
Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump is personally seeking regime change in Cuba, believing it will help cement his political legacy.
The Journal noted:
Emboldened by the U.S. ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the Trump administration is searching for Cuban government insiders who can help cut a deal to push out the Communist regime by the end of the year, people familiar with the matter said.
The Trump administration has assessed that Cuba’s economy is close to collapse and that the government has never been this fragile after losing a vital benefactor in Maduro, these people said.
Officials don’t have a concrete plan to end the Communist government that has held power on the Caribbean island for almost seven decades, but they see Maduro’s capture and subsequent concessions from his allies left behind as a blueprint and a warning for Cuba, senior U.S. officials said.
Trump and his inner circle, many members of which have Florida ties, see toppling Cuba’s Communist regime as the defining test of his national-security strategy to remake the hemisphere, according to officials.
It appears the clock is ticking for the communist regime in Havana.
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