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Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has publicly confirmed that talks are underway between the United States and Cuba. This is the first time Havana has officially acknowledged these meetings. In a speech on Friday, Díaz-Canel stated that the conversations are intended to resolve bilateral differences through dialogue, focusing on identifying and solving problems based on their severity.
Díaz-Canel emphasized they are in the initial phase of the talks.
The confirmation of the meetings between the two countries follows comments from President Donald Trump and other top officials about the communist country. Over the past several weeks, Trump has repeatedly stated the U.S. and Cuba are holding high-level conversations, and he has also said that Cuba is going to "fall."
Díaz-Canel said Cuba has been willing to have these conversations "on the basis of equality and respect for both countries' political systems, sovereignty and self-determination of our governments."
Díaz-Canel spoke about the dire situation in his country due to fuel shortages, saying fuel shipments have not arrived in the island in three months. He acknowledged that there have been areas of the country that have had electricity blackouts for more than 30 hours, affecting water pumping and impacting all economic and social activities. He said that there are tens of thousands of people, including children, whose surgeries have been delayed because of a lack of electricity.
Díaz-Canel has previously said the last shipment of oil arrived in December, before the U.S. raid to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3. Trump has also blocked oil shipments to Cuba.
The lack of fuel has aggravated an economic crisis on the island that was already years in the making.
The Vatican has facilitated or mediated in negotiations between the U.S. and Cuba in previous occasions. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez recently met with Pope Lee XIV at the Vatican.
