After the United States military operation in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a harsh warning to the Cuban regime, stating that the leaders in Havana "should be worried" about the new regional scenario.
According to Rubio, the fall of the Chavista leadership exposes the deep level of Cuba's interference in Venezuela and opens the door to a shift in the focus of United States foreign policy toward the Caribbean island.
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants and one of the most persistent critics of the Havana regime, asserted that Cuban presence in Venezuela has been decisive in the consolidation of Maduro's power.
During a press conference in which details of the military operation were provided, he stated that Venezuelan intelligence services were "basically full of Cubans" and that even the personal security ring of the detained leader depended to a large extent on agents sent from Cuba.
"One of the biggest problems Venezuelans have is that they must declare their independence from Cuba," Rubio noted, accusing the Cuban regime of having tried to "colonize" Venezuela from the standpoint of security and political control.
For the Secretary of State, this asymmetrical relationship turned Chavismo into a satellite of Havana, limiting Venezuelan sovereignty and contributing to the institutional collapse of the country.
Rubio's criticism of the Cuban regime was particularly harsh. He described Cuba as a "disaster" governed by "incompetent" leaders and, in some cases, "senile," reiterating that it is a dictatorship incapable of providing well-being to its population.
