13 April 2026
Cuba’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Josefina Vidal, has confirmed that exchanges between Cuba and the United States on de-escalating tensions remain at a “very preliminary” stage.
Speaking in Havana on 7 April she told the French news agency AFP, “We are in a very preliminary, very initial phase, and there are still no structured negotiations between the two governments.”
Her comments came as President Díaz-Canel indicated in an exclusive interview with Newsweek published on the same day that a formal dialogue with the US remains possible if a primary agreement on the scope and nature of future exchanges can be achieved.
Speaking to the magazine, he reiterated that despite ideological differences it is hoped that “some agreement can be reached in relation to common areas previously identified,” as long as Cuba’s sovereignty and political system is respected. (See Cuba Briefing 30 March 2026)
He warned however, in an apparent reference to Cuban American political figures and hawks within the Trump Administration seeking regime change, that progress is being made more difficult because “in American society there are some sectors that are very opposed to any kind of dialogue with Cuba;”
Cuba’s President also suggested that the US by positioning itself as “the aggressor,” has led in Cuban eyes to a general distrust of the US government and concern that the Trump Administration may fail to honour its commitments, as evidenced by Washington “proposing supposed talks with other nations, only to attack those nations later.”
Despite this, Cuba appears to recognise it has few options.
Speaking to the online publication Drop Site News, a not-for-profit Washington-based investigative news outlet, Deputy Foreign Minister, Carlos Fernandez de Cossio has recently observed in an apparent reference to Iran, that despite the US President’s inclination for attacking countries during talks, the Cuban government sees “no alternative” to having a direct dialogue with Washington.
Photo Credit:
https://cubaminrex.cu/en/deputy-minister-foreign-affairs
13 April 2026, Issue 1314
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