Speaking to the Sunday press shows after a surprise U.S. attack on Venezuela, Secretary of State Marco Rubio refused to rule out further strikes in the Caribbean.
Rubio, a Cuban American from Miami, would not eliminate the possibility of military action against Cuba while visiting NBC‘s “Meet the Press.”
President Donald Trump had threatened other Latin American countries following the airstrikes on Caracas and arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. He told Colombian President Gustavo Petro to “watch his ass” and floated US military involvement in Mexico and Cuba. Kristin Welker pressed Rubio directly on the statements and he declined to disavow them.
“The Cuban government is a huge problem,” he said. “I think they’re in a lot of trouble, yes. I’m not going to talk to you about what our future steps are going to be or what our policies are going to be. I don’t think it’s any mystery that we are not big fans of the Cuban regime.”
WELKER: Is the Cuban government the Trump administration's next target?
MARCO RUBIO: Well, the Cuban government is a huge problem. Yeah.
WELKER: Is that a yes?
RUBIO: I think they're in a lot of trouble, yes pic.twitter.com/UHbmshmu0z
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 4, 2026
Speaking to the press on Saturday, Trump said that an invasion of Cuba is “going to be something we’ll end up talking about.”
“Cuba is a failing nation right now, very badly failing nation, and we want to help the people,” he said.
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Following up Trump’s comments on the same stage, Rubio urged the press to take the president’s words “seriously.
“Cuba is a disaster,” he said. “If I lived in Havana and I was in the government I’d be concerned.”
