Trump, Rubio Call for New Cuban Leaders03/18 06:19

   

   HAVANA (AP) -- U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday pledged imminent 
action against Cuba's socialist government as his moves against the island 
bring the U.S.' longtime opponent deeper into crisis.

   A day after Trump's sanctions on Venezuela, including a stop to vital oil 
exports to Cuba, contributed to Cuba's latest nationwide blackout, Trump and 
Secretary of State Marco Rubio both said that the administration sees the 
island nation as the next country where the U.S. can expand its influence.

   "Cuba right now is in very bad shape," Trump said.

   "And we'll be doing something with Cuba very soon," he added.

   Until recently, Trump's comments on change in Cuba might have been 
considered remarkable. But they come after his administration's military raid 
that captured then-President Nicols Maduro in Venezuela and the launch of U.S. 
military strikes against Iran.

   The Trump administration is looking for President Miguel Daz-Canel to leave 
as the U.S. continues negotiating with the Cuban government, according to a 
U.S. official and a source with knowledge of talks between Washington and 
Havana. No detail has been offered about who the administration might like to 
see come to power.

   Many Cubans do not believe that Daz-Canel holds much power in Cuba, anyway, 
as opposed to revolutionary founding father Ral Castro and his family.

   With little reliable information trickling out of Havana or Washington, 
experts are watching closely for clues about what's in the works.

   "Some pieces of this story as they're trickling out, don't add up to me," 
said Michael Bustamante, a Cuba expert and associate professor of history at 
the University of Miami. "I can't quite figure out what the end game is here 
for either side."

   Rubio says Cuba's economy doesn't work and its government can't fix it

   Electricity was slowly being restored to hospitals and some homes Tuesday 
afternoon, but officials warned that the crumbling power network could fail 
again.

   The government blames its woes on a U.S. energy blockade after Trump in 
January warned of tariffs on any country that sells or provides oil to Cuba.

   Rubio, who is of Cuban heritage, said the island "has an economy that 
doesn't work in a political and governmental system. They can't fix it."

   A Cuban official said Monday that Cuba is open to trading with U.S. 
companies, but such promises have been made before.

   "So they have to change dramatically," Rubio said. "What they announced 
yesterday is not dramatic enough. It's not going to fix it."

   Trump has raised the possibility of a 'friendly takeover'

   The Trump administration is also demanding that Cuba release political 
prisoners and move toward political and economic liberalization in return for a 
lifting of sanctions. Trump has also raised the possibility of a "friendly 
takeover of Cuba."

   While Cuba produces 40% of its petroleum and has been generating its own 
power, it hasn't been sufficient to meet demand as its aging electric grid 
continues to crumble.

   Cuba's Ministry of Energy and Mines said on X that the island had restored 
the electrical system in the western town of Pinar del Rio and the southeastern 
province of Holguin and that some "microsystems" were beginning to operate in 
various territories.

   State-owned media reported that by late Monday power had been restored to 5% 
of residents in the capital, Havana, representing some 42,000 customers.

   Without power, food spoils as Cubans experience widespread misery

   U.S. sanctions and economic pressure have exasperated the misery many Cubans 
are experiencing.

   Pedro Rmos, a 75-year-old retired mechanic who shares a modest apartment in 
Old Havana with his wife, was boiling three pieces of chicken in an attempt to 
save them from spoiling with the power out.

   "I want to see if we can rescue some food," he said. "Two people older than 
70 live here. ... This is terrible."

   "The power outages are driving me crazy," said 48-year-old Dalba Obiedo. 
"Last night I fell down a 27-step staircase. Now I have to have surgery on my 
jaw. I fell because the lights went out."

   Havana resident Toms David Velzquez Felipe, 61, said the relentless 
outages make him think that Cubans who can should just pack up and leave the 
island. "What little we have to eat spoils," he said. "Our people are too old 
to keep suffering."