Scott Bessent links a potential transition on the Island to the collapse of Chavismo in Venezuela.
14ymedio /EFE, March 19, 2026 – NEW YORK/The United States Secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent, predicted this Thursday a process of “slow-motion” regime change in Cuba. “With Maduro out, Venezuela seems like there could be slow-motion regime change in Cuba. There may be a slow-motion regime change there,” Bessent said in an interview on the Fox Business network.
On Wednesday, the White House and the United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, rejected a report published by The New York Times according to which the government of Donald Trump is seeking the removal from power of Cuban president Miguel Díaz-Canel without demanding a regime change, as part of its negotiations with Havana.
“The reason so many U.S. media outlets keep publishing fake news like this is because they continue to rely on charlatans and liars who claim to be well informed,” Rubio said on social media regarding the report.
“At some point, the situation with Russia and Ukraine will be resolved. I think gas and energy prices will be lower than they have been in a long time”
Bessent also referred today in the interview to the role of Iran, which he described as a “horrible sponsor of global terrorism,” assuring that its military capacity is “degraded” and that Tehran has lost its ability to “project power” in the region and the world.
Regarding the conflict in Eastern Europe, the secretary expressed optimism about a short- or medium-term resolution: “At some point, the situation with Russia and Ukraine will be resolved. I think gas and energy prices will be lower than they have been in a long time.”
Cuba has been in the midst of a deep economic and social crisis for six years, which has been worsened since January by the loss of its main benefactor, Nicolás Maduro’s Venezuela, in addition to the oil blockade by the U.S. government.
Translated by Regina Anavy
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