The United States announced new sanctions against ministers and members of the Cuban intelligence services

The ministers of Energy, Justice, Communications and the president of the National Assembly are part of those sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which updated its list this Monday.

The heads of the Eastern and Central Army, the head of military counterintelligence and the General Directorate of Intelligence also enter the list.

The hypothesis of an attack by Cuba against the United States “does not make any sense,” declared the Cuban ambassador to the UN, accusing Washington of “fabricate a pretext” to “justify” a possible military action against his country.

“Cuba is not preparing to attack the United States. It makes no sense. We are a small country, with a small economy. We just want to have a good relationship with our neighborsincluding the United States, even though we have differences of opinion on many issues,” said Ernesto Soberón Guzmán in an interview in English with AFP in New York.

The Cuban ambassador made these statements after the American media Axios stated, based on classified intelligence information, that Cuba acquired more than 300 military drones and evaluates possible scenarios for its use near the US base at Guantánamo, at the eastern end of the Caribbean island.

“Cuba is not the aggressor,” Soberón Guzmán insisted, and stressed that “no one can find a single statement from the Cuban authorities or the Cuban people saying that they are ready to attack the United States.”

“What you will find are many statements from the US government threatening Cuba with military aggression,” he added. The diplomat refused to answer questions about the existence of military drones.

The White House considers that Cuba, located 150 kilometers from the coast of Florida and with a communist government, represents “an exceptional threat” to the security of the United States.

President Donald Trump has threatened many times to “take control” of the island and even mentioned sending an aircraft carrier.

Washington “is trying to create a situation to justify military aggression against Cuba. It has been trying to fabricate a pretext during these three or four months,” denounced Soberón Guzmán. For Havana, he said, the “first option is dialogue.”

“We are willing to talk, to find a peaceful solution to our differences, but if someone tried to attack (or) invade Cuba, “Cuba will defend itself, there is no doubt about that,” he assured, by invoking the right to self-defense in accordance with international law and the UN Charter.

“In the 1960s they tried to invade Cuba and were defeated,” he recalled, referring to the failed United States military operation in the Bay of Pigs that sought to overthrow Fidel Castro. “You can say this is a different situation. Yes, it is. But the will of the Cuban people has not changed,” he stressed.

In a context of a deep energy crisis since mid-2024, aggravated by the oil blockade imposed by Washington in January, Soberón Guzmán considered it logical that a population that “is suffering” expresses its discontent.

“But the question here is: Who is responsible for this suffering?“, he stated, and accused the United States of waging an “economic war” against Cuba.

“People are protesting because they are suffering collective punishment, but that does not mean that people are not willing to continue fighting for our independence, for our sovereignty,” he said.

Even Cubans who disagree with their government know that “The real person responsible for this situation is not the Cuban government.but the American government,” he added.