Rubio, speaking in Spanish, addressed the continued suffering that Cubans face after 67 years under the regime.
Rubio further explained that Raúl Castro founded a company called GAESA more than thirty years ago. The company, owned and operated by its military, has revenues three times greater than the budget of the current government. The elites of the military-run business have $18 billion dollars in assets and control 70 percent of Cuba’s economy, while none of their profits reach the Cuban people, Rubio said.
The Cuban government has long blamed its challenges on a decades-long U.S. embargo that limits trade, financial transactions, and business relationships with Cuba. While various administrations throughout the years have imposed sanctions, the Trump administration has slapped even stricter sanctions on the communist-run island nation.
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, argued that the country’s revolutionary communist system has failed its people and evolved into a corrupt power structure.
President Donald Trump is ready to open a “new chapter” with Cubans, but “the only thing standing in the way of a better future are those who control your country," according to Rubio.
Earlier this year, Rubio warned that Cuba was in “a lot of trouble” after the United States captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro earlier this year. The island nation largely depends on oil supplies from Venezuela and Mexico to meet its daily demand. But supplies have dropped drastically since the U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, while Mexico suspended supplies due to U.S. tariff threats.
Cuba’s power grid is also failing due to aging power plants, resulting in daily blackouts. Basic goods in the island nation are scarce. The U.S. offer to help Cuba includes $100 million in food and medicine, which must be distributed directly by the Catholic Church or other trusted charitable groups.