Cuba’s communist regime ruled out the possibility of sending troops to support Venezuela in the event of armed conflict against the United States. In an interview granted last week to the portal Zeteo Newsby journalist Mehdi Hasan, Cuban deputy chancellor, Carlos Fernández de Cossio, said that Havana’s performance in a possible confrontation will be limited to political support to the dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro.
“We will not go to war with the United States,” said the diplomat, reinforcing that Cuba will offer “all political support” to Caracas, but without military involvement.
Fernández de Cossío was insistently questioned about the possibility of direct engagement of the Cuban Armed Forces in defense of the Chavista regime. The vice-chancer has made it clear that Havana’s position is restricted to diplomatic solidarity.
“This is a very dangerous question. We will not go to war with the United States. We will toast all our support to Venezuela, basically political solidarity,” he said.
During the interview, the Cuban diplomat expressed concern about the escalation of tensions in the region. According to him, “there is a threatening stance against Venezuela. It is very irresponsible to believe that you can do this [uma invasão ao território venezuelano] without causing many lives of lives. It’s a threat to Venezuela, it’s a threat to the whole continent, for the whole region. ”
Asked about hypothetical scenarios, such as any attacks on Cuban vessels, Fernández de Cossío avoided giving direct answers, classifying these hypotheses as “a different circumstance.” At another point, he criticized Washington’s justification for the Caribbean military presence, focused on the fight against drug trafficking.
“Everyone knows that drug trafficking does not come from Venezuela,” he said, defending the Chavista regime and highlighting Maduro’s “patience” in the face of external pressures.
