For the first time since Donald Trump returned to the White House, Cuba has confirmed it is in direct talks with the U.S. government — a dramatic admission of desperation from a nation that has gone three months without a single drop of imported fuel.
President Miguel Díaz-Canel announced the negotiations in a televised address on Friday, as Cubans endure daily blackouts stretching over 12 hours, bakeries burning wood to make bread, and tens of thousands of surgeries postponed due to a lack of supplies.
“These talks have been aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences we have between the two nations,” Díaz-Canel said in a video aired on state television, flanked by Communist Party officials, including an unexpected figure: Raúl Castro’s grandson, who holds no official position.
The president said he hoped the negotiations would move the two long-time rivals “away from confrontation” — a striking shift in tone for a government that has spent decades defining itself by resistance to American pressure.
Three Months With No Fuel
Díaz-Canel made clear in a subsequent press conference that the oil blockade was taking a devastating toll.
No fuel has entered Cuba in three months, he said. Diesel and fuel oil reserves have plummeted, making the electrical grid increasingly “unstable.” A blackout last week plunged most of the island into darkness. Since then, outages have spiked to over 12 hours daily across much of Havana.
The crisis stems directly from Trump’s January capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Venezuela had been Cuba’s most important foreign benefactor, shipping oil that kept the island’s economy barely functioning. With Maduro removed, Trump cut off those shipments and threatened tariffs on any country that dared sell oil to Cuba.
Mexico has stopped sending oil. No other nation has stepped in. Cuba is isolated, desperate, and now talking.
The Talks
Díaz-Canel said he is directing negotiations alongside former President Raúl Castro, 94, who still wields immense influence. He did not say who had participated for the United States, nor when or where meetings took place.
Trump has said Secretary of State Marco Rubio is involved. A White House official confirmed the talks, speaking on condition of anonymity: “Cuba is a failing nation whose rulers have had a major setback with the loss of support from Venezuela and with Mexico ceasing to send them oil”.
Trump himself has made a series of provocative statements in recent weeks. On Monday, he said Cuba may be subject to a “friendly takeover,” then added: “it may not be a friendly takeover”.
The White House official struck a more diplomatic tone: “As the President stated, we are talking to Cuba, whose leaders should make a deal, which he believes ‘would be very easily made'”.
The Castro Grandson Mystery
Among the officials pictured behind Díaz-Canel in the announcement video was Raul Guillermo Rodriguez Castro, the 41-year-old grandson of Raúl Castro, widely known as “El Cangrejo” or “The Crab”.
Rodriguez Castro holds no official high-level position within the Communist Party, making his presence at such a significant announcement highly unusual. He was also seated behind Díaz-Canel at Friday’s press conference.
Media reports have suggested Rodriguez Castro engaged in back-channel discussions with U.S. officials, including a reported meeting with Marco Rubio in St. Kitts. Until now, the Cuban government had denied that any official encounters were underway.
His appearance suggests those denials may no longer be sustainable.
On the Streets of Havana
For ordinary Cubans, the news of talks brought a glimmer of hope — and a flood of frustration.
Yaimi Gonzalez, a 44-year-old homemaker, spoke for many: “We are already overwhelmed, we can’t take this situation anymore, and I think that this conversation between Cuba and the United States should lead to a better situation”.
This week, Reuters observed Havana residents banging on kitchen pots in the dark — a traditional form of protest that has historically signaled deep discontent.
Felipa Rodriguez, a 67-year-old retiree, struck a more cautious note: “If the talks are going to be friendly and Cuba doesn’t have to give ground politically, there’s no problem at all”.
The Vatican Angle
On the eve of Friday’s announcement, Cuba separately said it will release 51 prisoners in the coming days under an agreement with the Vatican. The release comes two weeks after Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez met with Pope Leo in the Vatican.
Díaz-Canel insisted the decision was “sovereign” and not “imposed by another country” — a defensive note suggesting the prisoner release may be part of a broader negotiation.
The Vatican served as mediator in the 2014 talks that led to rapprochement between Cuba and the United States under President Barack Obama. Its involvement now suggests a similar dynamic may be unfolding.
What Comes Next
Díaz-Canel described the talks as “initial stages” aimed at determining whether there is will on both sides to reach an agreement. He outlined Cuba’s efforts to increase energy independence — boosting domestic crude and gas production, planning a 10% increase in solar generation by month’s end.
But those measures are drops in an ocean of need. Three months without fuel imports have brought the island to its knees. The question now is whether Trump’s terms — whatever they are — will be acceptable to a government that has spent six decades defying American pressure.
