Get you up to speed: Top U.S. general in Caribbean meets with Cuban military leaders near Guantanamo Bay as tensions simmer
Gen. Francis Donovan, commander of the U.S. military’s Southern Command, met with Cuban Gen. Roberto Legrá Sotolongo at the naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The meeting involved discussions on operational security matters, with no immediate reports of the outcomes.
The meeting at Guantanamo Bay included discussions on operational security between Gen. Francis Donovan of SOUTHCOM and Gen. Roberto Legrá Sotolongo. This exchange is part of heightened diplomatic activities, following recent visits to Cuba by U.S. intelligence and diplomatic officials amid ongoing tensions between the two nations.
Gen. Francis Donovan of U.S. Southern Command met with Cuban Gen. Roberto Legrá Sotolongo to discuss operational security matters at Guantanamo Bay, marking a rare high-level interaction amid increased U.S. pressure on Cuba. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel denied any military threat from Havana, warning that a U.S. assault would lead to a “bloodbath.”
What remains unclear — The specifics of the operational security matters discussed between Gen. Francis Donovan and Gen. Roberto Legrá Sotolongo have not been disclosed.
U.S. general meets with Cuban military leaders near Guantanamo Bay amidst rising tensions
The head of the U.S. military’s Southern Command met with top Cuban military officials Friday at the edge of the American naval base at Guantanamo Bay, SOUTHCOM announced, as President Trump heaps pressure on Cuba and does not rule out military action.
Gen. Francis Donovan, commander of SOUTHCOM, held a “brief exchange on operational security matters” with Cuban Gen. Roberto Legrá Sotolongo, the U.S. military said on X.
In the past, American and Cuban officers have periodically held “fence-line meetings” to discuss security at Guantanamo Bay, a constant point of tension between the two countries because Cuba regards the naval station — which predates the Castro government — as illegal.
But it’s far rarer for the head of SOUTHCOM, which oversees U.S. forces in the Caribbean and most of Latin America, to meet with senior Cuban officials.
It’s the latest high-level contact between the United States and Cuba, following visits to Havana by CIA Director John Ratcliffe two weeks ago and State Department diplomats last month.
In recent months, the Trump administration has put intense pressure on Cuba, which has frustrated U.S. presidents for decades. The island nation has faced severe energy shortages after Mr. Trump threatened tariffs on any country that exports oil to Cuba. The U.S. has also tightened sanctions and criminally charged 94-year-old former Cuban leader Raúl Castro.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said Cuba needs to make sweeping economic and political reforms. When Ratcliffe visited the island to meet with Raúl Castro’s influential grandson, he conveyed the message that the U.S. could expand economic and security cooperation with Cuba if it made “fundamental changes,” a CIA official told WTX US News.
Meanwhile, Mr. Trump has dangled the possibility of military action, saying he’s interested in “taking Cuba in some form” and warning after the war with Iran, “Cuba’s going to be next.” Still, he said earlier this month, he didn’t think escalation would be necessary.
The U.S. intelligence community has analyzed how Cuba might respond to American military action and what kind of blowback may follow, WTX US News has previously reported. Among the concerns: WTX US News has confirmed that Cuba has acquired attack drones. Rubio has also raised worries about Cuba hosting Chinese and Russian spy facilities.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel denied Havana poses any military threat to the U.S., but warned that a U.S. assault would cause a “bloodbath.”
During Ratcliffe’s meeting in Havana earlier this month, he brought along a striking guest: One of the paramilitary operators who was involved in a mission to capture Cuba’s onetime ally, former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, in an operation that killed dozens of Cubans.
He made a point of introducing the paramilitary leader to the Cubans as the one who killed their people in Venezuela, several sources told WTX US News earlier this month.