After Iran, Trump Fixes His Sights on Cuba — 'Gonna Fall Pretty Soon'

The war in Iran is barely a week old. Khamenei is dead. And Donald Trump is already naming his next target.

"Cuba is gonna fall pretty soon," Trump told CNN on Friday — separately repeating the same message to Politico. At a White House event the day before, he turned directly to Secretary of State Marco Rubio in front of a Miami crowd and said, "Your next one is going to be that special Cuba. Let's get this one finished first."

Senator Lindsey Graham was blunter still. "Cuba's next," he told Fox News Sunday.

The groundwork is already laid

This isn't just rhetoric. Since ousting Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro in January, Trump imposed tariffs on any country selling oil to Cuba. Mexico and Venezuela — Havana's two primary energy suppliers — halted shipments immediately. Cuba has received no oil since 9 January.

The result is visible. Two-thirds of the island suffered a major blackout this week after its largest power plant failed. In Havana, roughly one in three families faces regular electricity cuts. The UN's coordinator in Cuba has warned that healthcare delivery, water services, and food distribution are all now at serious risk.

Rubio, meanwhile, is reportedly holding back-channel talks with Raúl Castro's grandson — who controls GAESA, the military conglomerate that runs much of Cuba's economy. Rubio's public language has been notably measured: "Cuba needs to change. It doesn't have to change all at once." That softer tone alongside Trump's blunt declarations suggests a deliberate two-track approach — maximum public pressure, quieter private negotiation.

Regional isolation accelerating

Ecuador expelled Cuba's ambassador this week, giving him 48 hours to leave. Honduras removed 168 Cuban medical workers. Jamaica terminated a medical cooperation agreement. Guatemala and the Bahamas signalled they may follow.

Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez called the pattern anything but coincidental — pointing directly at Washington as the architect.

On Saturday, Trump hosts Ecuador's Daniel Noboa, Argentina's Javier Milei, Chile's José Antonio Kast, and El Salvador's Nayib Bukele at Mar-a-Lago. The message the gathering sends is not subtle.

Venezuela in January. Iran right now. Cuba next.

Trump said it himself: "I've been watching it for 50 years, and it's fallen right into my lap."

Whether Havana negotiates, collapses, or finds an alternative lifeline — possibly from Russia or China — will likely become clear in the weeks ahead. What is already clear is that Washington is not waiting to find out.