Cuba Is Under Siege By USA, But Neither Xi Jinping Nor Putin Taking It With Trump

This is the season of high level summits. On May 14 and 15, U.S President Donald Trump visited Beijing and had ‘ fantastic’ talks, according to the U.S. President, Chinese media also went overboard explaining the great possibilities of China-US cooperation in political and economic spheres and also how important this was in the present state of global situation. Russian President Vladimir Putin was on a visit on May 20 to China and had very fruitful talks in strengthening the relations between the two big powers.

It is fine. All three big powers are working hard to improve their respective bilateral relations, nothing wrong in it. The moves for a friendly relationship between the three big powers are always welcome in the present unsettled world. But amidst all these, the Americans are pursuing with vengeance the implementation of their programme of bringing regime change in the Latin American region through their Trump doctrine. Right now, the focus is on Cuba after the US success in Venezuela.

It is ironic that the same day Trump was in Beijing talking with the Chinese President Xi Jinping on international issues including the war in Iran and the issue of Taiwan, in Havana, the CIA director John Ratcliffe was talking to the Cuba’s senior army officials about the need for bringing about fundamental changes in the communist nation including the changes in army leadership, closure of Russian and Chinese intelligence agencies and the adoption of economic reforms as desired by the USA.

CIA director’s sudden visit without formal clearance from the top Cuban leadership was a follow up of the Trump’s programme to convert Cuba into a most investor friendly nation with the setting up of more entertainment zones as also industries financed by the big US corporates. All these moves for regime change are taking place in an economic environment when the US blockade and sanctions have exhausted the common citizens. The fuel crisis has reached its nadir. The power cuts are taking place for long hours and essential commodities are lacking.

Cuban President has called for all support from the country’s citizens, but the situation is very grim if the economic blockade continues. Cuba needs big support from China, Russia and its other well wishers in the Latin American region. Mexico, Brazil and even Venezuela have been helping, but there is a limit for them. The non official organisations are also doing their best, but the needs are so big that only the lift of the US blockade can bring back normalcy in the battered Cuban economy.

And there the question of Chinese assistance comes. President Xi Jinping could have taken up the Cuban blockade issue boldly with President Trump in his summit discussions, but there was no indication in what Trump said latter or Chinese media reports mentioned that there was any concrete discussions between Trump and Xi on Cuban blockade issue. The present Cuban crisis is due to the US blockade and only Trump can withdraw that. Both Xi and Putin can press Trump on that, but they have not done so. President Xi bears more responsibility here as Cuba is still a communist nation and China also calls itself a communist Party led nation. It was the moral responsibility of President Xi to take up the issue seriously with Trump, but he failed as the leader of the strongest communist nation to do his duty.

The London based The Guardian rightly wrote while the world watched the pomp of Donald Trump’s trip to Beijing, the US was turning up the pressure thousands of miles away. Its oil blockade has plunged Cuba into a humanitarian crisis, sparking nationwide blackouts that have prompted rare protests, closing schools and universities and leaving hospitals battling to treat patients. Surveillance flights are circling. US media reported this weekend that federal prosecutors are preparing an indictment for Raúl Castro, the 94-year-old former president and brother of Fidel. Mr Trump has casually observed, while bragging about the kidnapping of Venezuela’s then leader Nicolás Maduro in January, that “Cuba is next”.

The US policy now is not to engage in any direct war in any country of Latin America. CIA and the US companies will do the job of finding out collaborators within the pink or Left regimes still governing a few nations. Mexico and Brazil are big countries with popular leaders. So Trump is not focusing attention on these big nations. The focus is on small nations, especially those who are having severe economic problems leading to resentment among the citizens. In the recent Presidential elections, Trump administrations backed the far right parties and got good dividends. For Cuba, the task is to divide the leadership and to look out for yesmen so that through them, the regime change programme can be implemented.

In Cuba, President is trying his best to control the situation but he has his limits also. The economic situation has gone out of control and it will worsen further as the US sanctions and economic blockade continue. Only a major political intervention by a powerful country like China can persuade Trump to reduce the intensity of blockade to the relief of the common Cuban citizens. So far China is not in a mood to do that. That is the tragedy. (IPA Service)