Overview
- President Donald Trump said the United States may pursue a "friendly takeover of Cuba," offering no details on what the concept would entail.
- Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio is negotiating with Cuban officials at a "very high level."
- The comments followed a deadly encounter off Cuba’s north coast in which Havana says four people on a Florida‑registered speedboat were killed and six injured during an exchange of fire with border guards.
- Rubio said the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Coast Guard are investigating the shooting, and U.S. officials have indicated at least one American citizen was among the dead.
- The administration has squeezed Cuba by cutting off Venezuelan oil and threatening tariffs on third‑country suppliers, while Cuban officials decry the measures as collective punishment and acknowledge limited contacts related to the incident.