Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth arrived at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay Wednesday, a show of force as Washington maintains an oil blockade against Cuba and President Trump continues threatening military intervention to remove the island’s communist leadership.
Hegseth met with troops stationed at the base, which the U.S. has operated for decades despite the near-total collapse of diplomatic relations following Cuba’s 1959 revolution. He was also scheduled to visit U.S. Central Command headquarters in Florida.
The trip follows a May meeting between the top U.S. commander in Latin America and Cuban military officials, described as a brief exchange on operational security matters. American warships have been operating in the Caribbean, and the Trump administration recently indicted former Cuban President Raúl Castro on federal charges, further escalating tensions.
