Yasin Gungor
12 January 2026•Update: 13 January 2026
ISTANBUL
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Monday said his government is not currently engaging with the US administration except on technical migration matters amid heightened tensions between the two countries.
Cuba remains open to dialogue with various American administrations, including current US government, on the basis of "sovereign equality, mutual respect, principles of international law, and mutual benefit and without interference in internal affairs and with full respect for our independence," Diaz-Canel wrote on US social media company X.
"As history demonstrates, for US-Cuba relations to progress, they must be based on international law rather than hostility, threats, and economic coercion," he added.
Addressing the American "blockade" imposed on his country, Diaz-Canel said the policy is "unrelated" to Cubans residing in the US.
He criticized the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966, which allows Cuban nationals reaching the US after January 1959 to apply for permanent residency after one year, regardless of entry method for migration flow to the US.
"They are now victims of changing policies toward migrants and the betrayal of Miami politicians," he said.
Diaz-Canel emphasized that Cuba strictly adheres to current bilateral migration agreements.
The comments came after US President Donald Trump named Cuba among possible future targets days after the Venezuela military operation, saying the Caribbean nation "is ready to fall."
Trump said Sunday that Cuba will no longer receive oil or financial support from Venezuela.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez rejected Trump's claims, stating Havana has never received monetary or material compensation for security services provided to any country.
Diaz-Canel blamed Washington for Cuba's deep economic hardships, rejecting criticism and insisting Havana remains fully sovereign after decades of American pressure.
