The Cuban government denounced this Monday the military deployment of U.S. “naval and air forces” in the southern Caribbean Sea and rejected the idea that the operation is aimed at combating drug cartels.
Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla stated on social media that the military movements respond to “the corrupt agenda” of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rodríguez Parrilla emphasized that Latin America and the Caribbean must respect each other as a conflict-free region.
Denunciamos presencia de fuerzas militares navales y aéreas de #EEUU en el sur del Caribe que, bajo falsos pretextos, responden a corrupta agenda del Secretario de Estado.
América Latina y el Caribe debe ser respetada como #ZonaDePaz. pic.twitter.com/BdouDTdQBb
— Bruno Rodríguez P (@BrunoRguezP) August 18, 2025
“We denounce the presence of U.S. naval and air forces in the southern Caribbean, which, under false pretexts, respond to the corrupt agenda of the Secretary of State. Latin America and the Caribbean must be respected as a Zone of Peace,” the foreign minister emphasized.
Last week, CNN revealed that Washington began deploying some 4,000 troops — mostly Marines — in Latin American and Caribbean waters as part of an operation against drug trafficking.
The operation includes P8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft, destroyers, a missile-equipped warship and even a nuclear submarine, according to EFE news agency.
According to a letter from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, released months ago, the U.S. military’s mission would include the defense of the national territory.
Hegseth noted that the objectives of the deployment also include “sealing the borders and repelling all forms of invasion, including mass immigration, drug trafficking, human smuggling and other criminal activities.”
Cuba recalled that in 2014 the heads of state and government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) signed a proclamation declaring the region a “zone of peace,” a commitment Havana is demanding in the face of what it considers a new military threat in the Caribbean.
