Trump Says He Wants to 'Get Cuba Done' Before Leaving Office and Would Consider Military Force

President Donald Trump has said he wants to "get Cuba done" before leaving office in 2029, adding that he would "certainly consider" military intervention against the communist-run Caribbean island, CNBC reported.

In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Thursday, Trump said his administration was monitoring the situation in Havana "very closely" and described Cuba as a "failed" state. "I want to get Cuba done before I leave," Trump said. CNBC reported that, according to Politico, the comments marked the first time he has put a timeline on possible military intervention to topple Cuban authorities.

Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio, whose parents are from Cuba, "would love to do it," and said he would "certainly consider" a short military operation.

An embargo, blackouts, and new shipping sanctions

The comments come as the United States continues to enforce a comprehensive economic embargo against Cuba, a campaign that has contributed to a deepening energy and economic crisis on the island. Cuba has suffered repeated nationwide blackouts in recent months, as well as fuel and food shortages, CNBC reported.

The Cuban Embassy in Washington estimated on Thursday that the cost of the U.S. blockade to Cuba between March 2025 and February 2026 amounted to $8 billion. Earlier this month, the Treasury Department imposed further sanctions on Cuban oil tankers and shipping companies and threatened to target any international entity or person doing business within its marine or maritime industries, as part of a push "to end the Cuban regime's malign activities, both in Cuba and across our hemisphere."

In response, Cuba's Embassy in Washington said those steps "deepen an energy siege that already leaves hospitals without reliable power and families facing blackouts. The blockade is not targeted at a government. It is collective punishment that hits ordinary" Cubans, CNBC reported, quoting the embassy.

Trump's remarks are a statement of intent, not an order to use force. He did not announce a military plan, a date, or an authorization from Congress. What he did do is attach a deadline — before he leaves office in 2029 — to a long-running embargo and a new round of tanker and shipping sanctions, and say that a short military operation is something he would consider. The Cuban Embassy, meanwhile, put the one-year cost of the blockade at $8 billion and called the energy restrictions collective punishment that hits hospitals and families already living through blackouts.