border troops killed four people and wounded six others on Wednesday during a confrontation with a speedboat in Cuban territorial waters, in an incident that is raising tensions between Cuba and the United States at an already sensitive moment in relations between the two countries.
Cuba’s Ministry of the Interior said the speedboat’s passengers opened fire on troops after they approached the vessel, wounding a commander on the Cuban vessel. The Cuban government later stated that the ten people involved were Cuban nationals living in the US who intended to carry out an infiltration for terrorist purposes. Authorities seized assault rifles, handguns and explosive devices following the confrontation. Those wounded aboard the speedboat were taken for medical treatment.
The incident comes as Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in the region for an annual meeting of Caribbean heads of state and is leading ongoing talks with Cuba. Rubio confirmed that DHS, the Coast Guard and other government elements were responding, and said the US Embassy in Havana had requested access to those aboard the Florida-registered vessel. He described the shootout as highly unusual and not something that has happened with Cuba in a very long time. He also confirmed the people on the speedboat were not US government personnel.
The confrontation comes at a complicated diplomatic moment. President Trump had been weighing aggressive measures against Cuba following the US-backed ouster of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, which cut off Cuban oil supplies from Venezuela. Trump had previously suggested Cuba looks ready to fall and had reportedly considered a total oil blockade. However, in what appears to be a reversal, the Treasury Department announced Wednesday it would allow companies to resume selling Venezuelan oil to Cuba.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said he had directed state prosecutors to cooperate with law enforcement in investigating the incident, while Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz called for an immediate investigation, expressing concern about the Trump administration’s silence on the shooting.
