U.S. President Donald Trump this Friday threatened Cuba, asserting that his country would “take Cuba almost immediately”, following resolution of the war against Iran.

The U.S. President gave a speech during an event on May 1st at a private dinner for with political and business leaders of the Forum Club at the “Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts” in West Palm Beach, Florida.

In his address, President Donald Trump specified that the purported “takeover of Cuba” would only occur after achieving victory in Iran and securing an agreement to end that conflict.

RELATED: Trump Orders Tightening of Financial Blockade Against Cuba

“We’ll finish this one (Iran) first, I like to finish jobs“, Trump asserted, emphasizing his sequential approach to foreign policy interference.

“Upon our return, what we will do upon our return from Iran, we will send one of our aircraft carriers, perhaps the Abraham Lincoln, the largest in the world, we will have it approach, stop a hundred meters from the shore, and they will answer, thank you very much, we surrender“, Trump boasted, further elaborating on his plan during the dinner speech.

Trump’s Increasing Pressure

The U.S. Republican President’s comments emerged mere hours after the White House issued a new Eexecutive Order against Cuba. This measure, signed by President Trump, immediately intensified and expanded the already stringent sanctions that the United States administration imposes unilaterally on the Cuban Government.

This latest coercitive action complements an energy blockade that Washington implemented against Havana on January 29 -also through an Executive Order– enforced by threats of secondary tariffs and additional sanctions. Under the new directive, these punitive actions will now target “foreign or U.S. people“, if they engage in activities generating foreign currency revenue for the Caribbean island.

These new measures, which do not name any specific individuals, focus on core sectors of the Cuban economy, notably mining, financial services, energy and defense. Any person or company involved in activities within these sectors or conducting business with the Cuban Government will face a complete freeze of their assets in the United States. Furthermore, if a bank in another country facilitates a “significant transaction” for any of the affected entities, it could face frozen accounts on Wall Street or a prohibition from operating in dollars, among other severe penalties.

The Executive Order not only punishes members of the Cuban Government but also targets business owners, officials or individuals at any level who participate in the sanctioned activities.

The new sanctions are part of a “maximum pressure” policy that seeks to limit Cuba’s access to international finance, fuel and operations; reinforcing with these the existing the over 60-years economic, commercial and financial blockade.

For his part, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, rejected the new sanctions in a message on X. “Today, the U.S. Government has announced new coercive measures that reinforce the brutal genocidal blockade, as evidence of its moral poverty”, he asserted.

The threatening announcement, sketched in a jocular tone, coincided with Trump’s travel to Florida, a state with a significant and politically influential Cuban community. There, he participated in an event promoting his economic policy for retirees in The Villages, suggesting a strategic timing to appeal to this key demographic.

Text reads: “(…) No honest person can accept the excuse that Cuba is a threat to that country. The blockade and its reinforcement cause so much damage, owing to the intimidating and arrogant behavior of the greatest military power on the planet.”

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