The Tribune

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Digital Editor

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

US President Donald Trump suggested Cuba could be next in Washington’s sights, linking Havana’s influence in Venezuela to the US military operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas.

The move sent shockwaves through the region, prompting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to issue a travel warning for Bahamians not to travel to Venezuela and calls for peaceful dialogue and adherence to international law from CARICOM.

Venezuela's high court has ordered Vice President Delcy Rodriguez to assume the role of interim president, and its constitution requires elections must be held within 30 days if a president becomes “permanently unavailable".

According to the Associated Press, people were slow to resume routines in Caracas after Maduro’s capture with dozens of stores, restaurants and churches closed. The press agency said those on the streets looked shell-shocked, staring at their phones or into the distance.

“May God give us strength for what we are experiencing. I’m sad. He is a human being,” said Nely Gutiérrez, a retiree, as her eyes welled with tears. “They have him handcuffed, and if he is in the hands of the empire, no one can save him from there, only God, not even God. He will die there.”

A newly unsealed U.S. Justice Department indictment contends Maduro’s government was fueled by an extensive drug-trafficking operation that flooded the U.S. with thousands of tons of cocaine.

Maduro is charged alongside his wife, Cilia Flores, who was also arrested on Saturday. Also indicted are his son and three others.Outside the Brooklyn jail holding Mr Maduro, a throng of Venezuelan expatriates, many draped in flags, gathered on the sidewalks Saturday night to celebrate his capture. The crowd cheered as the law enforcement motorcade believed to be carrying the deposed leader and his wife arrived at the jail.

During a January 3 press conference following the US operation in Venezuela, Mr Trump was asked whether the action carried a message for Cuba.

“Cuba is an interesting case,” Mr Trump said.

“Cuba is not doing very well right now, that system is not been a very good one for Cuba. The people there have suffered for many, many years. And I think Cuba is going to be something we'll end up talking about because Cuba is a failing nation right now.”

He continued: “We want to help the people in Cuba, but we want to also help the people that were forced out of Cuba and living in this country.”

Mr Trump did not outline specific policy steps toward Havana but suggested Cuba would be addressed as part of a broader regional reassessment following the Venezuela operation.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, himself a Cuban American, expanded on the president’s assessment of Cuba’s condition and further alleged its involvement in Venezuela’s security structure.

Mr Rubio called Cuba a “disaster” with its leadership comprised of “incompetent senile men”, adding that the country “has no economy. It's in total collapse.”

He also alleged Cuban influence within Venezuela under Maduro, and claimed that Cuban officials had sought to dominate Venezuela’s security sector.

“One of the biggest problems that Venezuelans have is they have to declare independence from Cuba,” Mr Rubio said, adding that Cuban authorities “tried to basically colonize it from a security standpoint.”

Asked about energy flows to Cuba, Mr Rubio referred to existing sanctions enforcement.

“Anything that's sanctioned, it's sanctioned oil, it it's not going to be allowed to get there,” he said.

Beyond Cuba, Mr Trump used the press conference to reiterate a broader hemispheric stance, saying: “Under our new national security strategy, American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”

He also issued comments directed at Colombian President Gustavo Petro, accusing Colombia of producing and exporting cocaine and saying Mr Petro “does have to watch his ass.”