Cuba has reportedly acquired over 300 military drones for potential attacks on Guantanamo Bay and parts of Florida.
Classified intelligence shared with Axios said that officials in the country discussed hitting the US base in Cuba and Florida’s Key West, just 90 miles north of Havana.
A US official told the outlet that the intelligence highlights how much the Trump administration sees Cuba as a threat due to its drone development and the presence of Iranian military advisers in the nation.
‘When we think about those types of technologies being that close, and a range of bad actors from terror groups to drug cartels to Iranians to the Russians, it’s concerning. It’s a growing threat,’ the official said.
Cuba has been buying up drones of ‘varying capabilities’ from both Russia and Iran for the last three years and kept them hidden, Axios reported.
In the last month, Cuban officials have reached out to their Russian counterparts for more drones and military accounts, officials claimed.
According to intelligence intercepted by the US, Cuban officials are ‘trying to learn about how Iran has resisted us’.
Officials added that they don’t believe Cuba is an imminent threat or actively planning an attack on America, but rather they have been discussing drone warfare in case fighting breaks out as US relations continue to fall apart.
A number of drones here in an underground based in Iran in a file handout picture released by the Iranian Army
It comes as officials in the US look set to unveil an indictment against former Cuban President Raul Castro, seen here in January of 2024
‘They’re part of the Putin meat grinder. They’re learning about Iranian tactics. It’s something we have to plan for,’ the official added.
‘No one’s worried about fighter jets from Cuba. It’s not even clear they have one that can fly.
‘But it’s worth noting how close they are – 90 miles. It’s not a reality we are comfortable with.’
In a statement, Cuba’s embassy did not deny they possessed attack drones saying: ‘Like any country, Cuba has the right to defend itself against external aggression.
‘It is called self-defense, and it is protected by International Law and the UN Charter,’ the statement continued.
‘Those from the US who seek the submission and, in fact, the destruction of the Cuban nation through military aggression and war, do not waste a single moment fabricating pretexts, creating and spreading falsehoods, and distorting as extraordinary the logical preparation required to face a potential aggression.’
It comes as officials in the US has reportedly sought an indictment against former Cuban President Raul Castro in connection with the downing of planes 30 years ago.
The potential indictment – which would need to be approved by a grand jury – is expected to focus on Cuba‘s deadly 1996 shootdown of planes operated by the humanitarian group Brothers to the Rescue, CBS News reports.
Four men were killed when the two civilian aircrafts were shot down over the Florida Straits on flights focused on spotting Cubans fleeing communism in makeshift boats. The group would then relay their coordinates to the US Coast Guard.
The four men, seen here, were all killed when the two aircrafts were shot down over the Florida Straits
Trump has pressed for major reforms in Cuba and even previously floated a ‘friendly takeover’
Florida‘s Attorney General said in March he was reopening an investigation into the plane downing – something the families of the victims said they would support.
Raul, 94, formally stepped down as the leader of Cuba’s Communist Party in 2021, but he is still widely seen as one of the most powerful figures in the country.
President Donald Trump has pressed for major reforms in the communist country and has even floated a ‘friendly takeover’ of Cuba.
The Trump administration has also threatened tariffs on any country that sells or supplies oil to Cuba, leading to energy shortages as oil shipments are largely cut off.
Amid the threat, CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Cuban officials – including Castro’s grandson – on Thursday.
Ratcliffe met with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, Interior Minister Lázaro Álvarez Casas and the head of Cuban intelligence services, and discussed intelligence cooperation, economic stability and security issues.
The CIA director was there ‘to personally deliver President Donald Trump’s message that the United States is prepared to seriously engage on economic and security issues, but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes,” a CIA official said.
