USA TODAY
Updated March 8, 2026
- What sectors are included in the Trump-Cuba economic deal?
- How does Trump's Cuba strategy differ from Obama's?
- How did the U.S. oil strategy impact Cuba's fuel crisis?
The details of the prospective deal and exact timing are not known. But an agreement could include a relaxation on Americans' ability to travel to Havana. Trump would not need Congress’ approval to loosen those types of restrictions.
Discussions have included an off-ramp for President Miguel Díaz-Canel, the Castro family remaining on the island and deals on ports, energy and tourism. The U.S. government has floated dropping some sanctions.
After the dramatic U.S. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, and the abrupt cutoff of oil shipments, the island appeared to be the administration’s next target for regime change. But instead of a blunt-force campaign to topple Havana’s communist government, the Trump administration is advancing moves that reframe regime change through economic deals that prioritize U.S. interests, staving off an all-out confrontation.
President Barack Obama lifted some of the rules during the final years of his presidency only to see Trump put some of them back in place during his first term.
Trump’s administration has also pursued an economic strategy, but sources close to the administration say it’s different than what Obama did because the president has demonstrated with his strike on Venezuela and the U.S. seizure of its oil, that he’s serious about restoring America’s dominance in the Western Hemisphere.
It was not immediately clear what the United States would get in return for the agreement that Trump has been teasing for the past week.
Trump has said publicly that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is having discussions with the Cuban government and the regime wants to make a deal.
The White House referred USA TODAY to Trump's comments at the Shield of the Americas summit in response to the news organization's request for comment.
"Cuba's at the end of the line. They're very much at the end of the line. They have no money. They have no oil. They have a bad philosophy. They have a bad regime that's been bad for a long time,” Trump told Latin American leaders on March 7.
Trump said then that Cuba was negotiating with Rubio, himself and other members of the administration who he did not name. “I would think a deal would be made very easily with Cuba,” he said.
“Cuba's in its last moments of life as it was. It'll have a great new life, but it's in its last moments of life the way it is,” Trump added.
How is the Trump Cuba deal different than Obama's?
Former U.S. officials who’ve worked on Cuba policy have privately questioned how close the administration actually is to striking a deal.Trump has been warning of the Cuban government’s downfall since his administration struck Venezuela and snatched Maduro in a secret raid on his compound. Trump said in January that the United States didn’t need to take military action in Cuba because the country would collapse economically if it were unable to rely on Venezuela.
Trump has leverage that Obama didn’t have, the people familiar with ongoing discussions said.
The administration has ratcheted up pressure on Cuba’s government in recent days with thinly veiled warnings that it could indict Cuban government officials.
Rubio and his aides have reportedly been in secret talks with Raul Castro's grandson, Raulito Castro, who is close to his grandfather. The White House has declined to comment on the reports but senior administration officials have not shot them down.
Trump told Inter Miami CF owner Jorge Mas, whose father was born in Cuba, at a March 5 event at the White House that he’d be able to visit the country soon.
“You won't need my approval, you just fly back in,” Trump said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks next to U.S. President Donald Trump during the "Shield of the Americas" Summit in Miami, Florida, U.S., March 7, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
He’s indicated that he would like to finish the bombing campaign with Iran first, saying he would like to wait a couple weeks, but suspected they’d be together again soon celebrating.
“As we achieve a historic transformation in Venezuela, we're also looking forward to the great change that will soon be coming to Cuba,” Trump said two days later on March 7.
At his Latin American leaders summit, Trump said many of the like-minded leaders he was hosting had asked him to take care of Cuba.
“Four of you said actually, ‘Could you do us a favor? Take care of Cuba.’ I'll take care of it, OK?” Trump told them.
Close allies of the president have also been sharing public warnings with Cuba in the wake of Maduro’s capture. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said last week in a Fox News interview that Cuba was next on the president’s list.
Trump has indicated several times in the past week that he would prefer to wait until the United States’ war with Iran wraps up to turn to Cuba, where the Castros wield significant power behind the scenes and there’s no evident successor to Raul’s hand-picked heir Díaz-Canel.
“Our focus right now is on Iran, and we'll do that. I would say, ‘what will you do, take about two days off, Marco?” Trump said at Doral. “Maybe an hour. He'll take one hour off, and then he'll finish up a deal on Cuba.”
Francesca Chambers is a White House Correspondent for USA Today covering foreign policy and presidential elections. You can follow her on X @fran_chambers.
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