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U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that Cuba has “already fallen,” describing the country as a failed state and calling for political and economic change.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity, Rubio said Cuba no longer has a functioning economy or government and expressed hope that Havana would “choose a different path.”
“Well, the truth is Cuba's already fallen,” Rubio said. “It doesn't have a functional economy and it's governed by people who continue to preach about some revolution that has been dead for 20 years.”
Rubio said Cuba’s political model had failed to produce a functioning economy and argued that economic reforms alone would not be enough.
“The problem that Cuba has basically right now is it is a failed state in every sense of the word,” he said.
Rubio said political freedoms would have to accompany economic changes.
“You cannot have economic freedom in Cuba if you don't have political freedom first,” he said. “You have to have both happening at least at the same time. That will require a period of transition.”
He also pointed to migration from Cuba, saying nearly 20% of the population had left the country since 2021 and describing the departures as evidence of a “complete failure.”
Rubio said Washington hoped people in control of Cuba’s government would recognize the situation facing the country.
“We're hopeful that Cuba will choose a different path,” he said.
He warned Cuban officials against believing they could simply wait for the Trump administration to leave office.
“They are wrong and they will learn the lesson the hard way if they don't correct,” Rubio said.
The U.S. imposed an oil blockade earlier this year, adding pressure as Cuba faces fuel shortages, blackouts and failing infrastructure. Washington has maintained an embargo on Cuba for more than 60 years, while the Trump administration has stepped up pressure on Havana.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez told the U.N. General Assembly on Saturday that Cuba would remain open to dialogue with Washington.
U.S. President Donald Trump said over the weekend that he expected the U.S. and Cuba to reach an agreement and did not believe military action would be necessary.
During the same Fox News interview, Rubio also discussed Venezuela, saying the country needed “free and fair elections.”
He said Washington was working to establish conditions for such elections as soon as possible but did not provide a timeline.
The Trump administration increased pressure in the region after the U.S. military removed and seized then-Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January.
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