For centuries Cuba was a Spanish colony. During this period of subjugation, it fought bravely against colonialism and won its independence by fiercely fighting for its rights. The US President Donald Trump desperately wants to once again rob Cuba of its freedom and rule over it as a subjugated nation. The tightening of economic sanctions since he assumed office for the second time and the indictment of former Cuban President Raul Castro on May 20 are nothing short of declaration of its intention to occupy Cuba. The actual goal is to destroy socialist Cuba.

The Trump administration has now prepared a plan to attack Raul Castro and Cuba based on an incident that took place three decades ago, in 1996. On February 24, 1996, two small planes that illegally entered Cuban airspace were shot down by the Cuban Air Force. The first rule of the air is that pilots are not allowed to cross another country’s airspace without permission. As the book ‘Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana’ (co-authored by William M. LeoGrande and Peter Kornbluh) explains, a group of Cubans who had been continuously violating international airspace for a year ignored repeated warnings. Cuba had made it clear that there would be serious consequences if they continued to violate international airspace rules.

The 1996 Planes Shooting

Who invited this provocative incursion, the ensuing gunfight, and the deaths of four Cuban-American pilots? Who else but José Basulto, who was directly involved in several anti-Cuban coups, including a direct attack to assassinate Fidel Castro, and above all the infamous 1961 Bay of Pigs coup planned by the CIA! He directly participated in the planning of the controversial events of 1996.

After the victory of the Cuban Revolution in 1959, while the vast majority of the population welcomed the revolution, a small minority, propertied classes, took a different position. A small group of supporters of the American puppet regime which was headed by the dictator Fulgencio Batista, left the country. They continued with their counter-revolutionary efforts to overthrow the Cuban Revolution by setting up camp in Miami, Florida, and nearby areas in the United States which are adjacent to the Cuban island. Documents have emerged showing that the CIA made more than 600 attempts to assassinate revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, both directly and through mafia groups. The terrorist José Basulto personally participated in such plans, directly led the attack group that illegally entered Cuban airspace continuously and tried to incite clashes. Although two small planes accompanying him were shot down, Basulto’s plane returned without incident.

In 1996, the then-President Fidel Castro had repeatedly warned that repeated violations of his country’s border would have serious consequences. There is evidence that the White House, the nerve center of US administration, the State Department, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) held discussions on this matter. An e-mail message indicated the possible ramifications of Basulto’s anti-Cuban group – which operates under the name Brothers to the Rescue – not being controlled. That message from a month before the shooting down incident was as follows: “Worst Case Scenario is that one of these days the Cubans will shoot down one of these planes and the FAA better have all its ducks in a row.”

It is clear that the US authorities themselves had discussed that the continuous violation of international aviation rules might lead to the shooting down of those small planes. The e-mail message quoted above is clear evidence of this. In other words, an incident that happened 30 years ago, in which Cuba had no other option but to shoot down two small planes which repeatedly challenged their sovereignty with the help of the CIA, is now being used by the United States to declare Raul Castro guilty. At that time, General Raul Castro, who is now 95 years old (his birthday was on June 3), was Cuba’s Minister of Defence. Donald Trump, who ignores international law and insists that his own will is the law, is actually aiming to destroy the only socialist country in the Western Hemisphere, by targeting Raul Castro.

On January 3, 2026, American soldiers illegally entered Venezuela abducted the country’s President, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, first combatant Celia Flores. They have since been subjected to a farcical trial in the United States. It is clear as day that the US is acting as a global criminal State by violating international law. The incident from 1996 is being dusted off in order to pave the way for a terrorist intervention to abduct the Cuban revolutionary leader, General Raúl Castro, to the United States, in line with the Venezuelan model.

The victorious Cuban revolution in 1959 caught the US rulers by surprise. Since then, the prepared plans to orchestrate a coup in Cuba to bring the country back under their influence as soon as possible. Even after trying for more than six and a half decades, the US ruling classes were not successful. That is why the US imperialist regime and President Donald Trump, a ‘warmonger’, are determined to formulate and implement a terrifying plan, to invade and take over Cuba.

Preparation for Invasion

The US Justice Department’s indictment of Raul Castro on May 20 should be seen as the beginning of the public announcement of the invasion plan to kidnap and subject him to a farcical trial by the US State, on the Maduro model. The indictment, signed by US Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones and Assistant Attorneys Abbie D. Waxman and Michael E. Gilfarb, is much like a verdict itself.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kashyap (Kash) Pramod Patel is of Indian descent, so there is an Indian touch to these developments. Patel said that the indictment of Raul Castro and five other Cubans is proof that “the FBI never forgot….and the indictment is a major step toward accountability.”

On May 14, six days before Raul Castro was indicted, a US Air Force Boeing C-40B Clipper jet landed at Havana’s famous José Martí International Airport. A group of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officials, led by their chief, John Ratcliffe engaged in negotiations with a key delegation from the Cuban side. Raul Guillermo Rodríguez Castro – Raul Castro’s grandson – was also a prominent presence in the Cuban delegation. He had been part of the team conducting parallel negotiations on behalf of Cuba for some time with key officials of the US administration.

The CIA chief tried to intimidate the Cuban delegation by reminding them about the abduction of Venezuelan President Maduro and his wife after killing 32 Cuban security guards assigned to protect him. In fact, the US President Donald Trump should be tried in a criminal court in Cuba for the murder of 32 Cuban citizens in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. The United States has not been punished for dropping bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki (remember, it was in defeated Japan)! Such a global gangster, with a stockpile of nuclear weapons, says it is a great crime to shoot down two small planes as per international law, for repeatedly violating Cuba’s airspace!

Cuba is Prepared

A key US demand is that Cuba should alter its political and economic policies, abandon its socialist path. The Cuban leadership’s response is unequivocal. “You shouldn’t even think about such a thing!” Cuba has made it clear that it will not bow to American threats. The CIA seems to be fully aware that the response to any move against Cuba will be different from those in the case of Venezuela. Cuba, a country of only 11 million people, is constantly under the threat of attack by American military groups. The warlike blockade that has been implemented by the United States and most of its allies for six and a half decades has caused severe economic damage to this small country. In addition, severe fuel shortage has continued for about a year at varying levels. Currently, Cuba has no electricity for almost 22 hours in a day.

Despite the brutality of the American blockade, which has created difficult living conditions, especially economically, Cubans have not turned against the Communist Party and revolted against its government. For long, the imperialist and capitalist forces have been miscalculating that a regime change will occur. Why did this not happen? The Communist Party and the workers, youth, peasants, women, and students have been constantly carrying out strong and patient political resistance activities among all sections of the people there. As part of this, a nine-page booklet is being distributed throughout Cuba. A family guide has been disseminated by the Civil Defense with practical measures in the face of a possible military aggression amid escalating tension with the United States. It outlines the duties of every Cuban to ‘protect, resist, survive, and survive.’ There are detailed instructions on how to evacuate to a safe location in the event of an air attack, how to provide first aid, and how to defend and defeat the US in the event of an US invasion of Cuban soil.

Raul Castro – A Revolutionary Fighter

Some people think of Raúl Castro only as the younger brother of the revolutionary leader Fidel Castro. In fact, Raúl Castro is a revolutionary fighter who has always stood by Fidel in all the battles for Cuba’s liberation. The first phase of the modern Cuban revolution began with the surprise attack on the Moncada Barracks in Santiago de Cuba in 1953 on July 26. Fidel was 27 years old at the time and Raúl was 22. After the Moncada struggle was suppressed, along with others, Fidel and Raúl were arrested. Fidel’s arguments during the trial are now available as a world-famous book titled ‘History Will Absolve Me’. Following popular protests for their release, Fidel, Raúl and other comrades were released after a long period of imprisonment.

It was in Mexico where the Cuban group went into hiding that they met Che Guevara, the revolutionary star who rose as the eternal inspiration of the world’s youth. It was Raul Castro who introduced ‘Che’ to Fidel. What happened after that is history. Fidel, Raul, and Che set sail to Cuba with more than 80 fighters on the yacht ‘Granma’. They combined guerrilla warfare centered in the forests of the Sierra Maestra mountains with popular protests in the countryside to make the revolution a success. Fidel, Che, Raul, and Camilo Cienfuegos played the lead role. Raul Castro had come into contact with Marxism and the Communist Party before Fidel. At that time, the Communist Party in Cuba was known as the Popular Socialist Party. As the leader of its youth wing, Raul Castro participated in the World Youth Festival held in Vienna in 1953.

Economic Blockade

The Trump administration has announced a direct offensive war plan against Cuba, a small country which is synonymous with courage. Concurrently, the United States has also announced a ‘secondary embargo’ against countries that engage in any economic and commercial joint ventures with Cuba. The embargo is also creating an indescribable crisis and stagnation in the sectors of tourism, aviation, shipping, mining, energy, health, and pharmaceutical manufacturing in Cuba. For example, Sherritt International, a large multinational mining company in Canada, has been mining nickel and cobalt in Cuba for decades. It is withdrawing from Cuba due to the new US embargo. The Canadian company has asked Cuba to return the $277 million it invested in the joint venture. It is estimated that Cuba is losing between Rs. 66,775 crore and Rs. 76,314 crore (between $7 billion and $8 billion) annually due to the US embargo. The cumulative loss over more than six decades is Rs. 152.63 lakh crore ($160 billion). The US embargo also prevents Cuba from getting crude oil from neighbouring Venezuela or Mexico.

Miguel Díaz-Canel, born after the Cuban liberation struggle and hence a representative of the country’s post-revolutionary generation, is the current President of the country and the first secretary of the Cuban Communist Party. Responding to Trump’s threat, he said: “The sovereignty of the nation is not up for debate; we will not surrender. We do not want a war. But we will be prepared. We dedicate our lives to the revolution.” In an emotional closing speech at the party Congress, Raúl announced that he was stepping down from his administrative leadership duties due to age, like his elder Fidel. His words were strong and courageous: “It is time for a new generation to take on the main responsibilities. I am stepping down from leadership responsibilities. But if the nation and the revolution face critical moments, I will be there as an armed volunteer to join you in the fight.”

Now, as the imperialist eagle targets that fighter in the days after his 95^th birthday, young people, children, and the elderly are rallying in anti-imperialist rallies both within Cuba and in other countries, including the United States. The Communist Party of USA condemned the US government’s plan to attack Cuba as a violation of international law. The American movement ‘Pastors for Peace’ (Evangelists for Peace) is on the front lines, declaring solidarity with Cuba.

CPI(M) Calls for Solidarity

The CPI(M) Central Committee meeting held in Delhi from May 22 to 24 decided to strengthen and expand Cuban solidarity activities. This is an urgent task because Trump plans to concentrate on Cuba once the ceasefire with Iran is operational. Trump has publicly stated his dream of ‘taking over Cuba’. He has sent USS Nimitz an American aircraft carrier, to the Cuban coast. He is under the illusion that the Cuban leadership will surrender in fear. But Cuba has declared that if they are attacked, imperialism will realise the true heroic character of the Cuban people!

Cuba has complex and critical days ahead of it. What is needed today is strong international solidarity. Cuba is not alone, progressive humanity stands by it. We hope that today’s Cuban fighters, the descendants of José Martí, Fidel, Che, Camilo Cienfuegos and Frank País, will be ready to follow the heroic example of the predecessors.

Malayalam thinker and storyteller Paul Zacharia visited Cuba some time ago, and despite the difficulties created by the American embargo, he highlighted the features of life he saw there. A society without thieves. Equality generally prevails. There is no discrimination between blacks and whites. He said that he, who used to justify some elements of the capitalist system, would agree with socialism if what he saw in Cuba was indeed socialism! The well-known work of the renowned journalist Ullekh N P, ‘Mad about Cuba’, also tells us the same fact; with detailed analysis.

US President Donald Trump is in the mood to conduct a tariff war or an armed attack against any country in the world. The aggressive plan to launch an attack on Cuba as part of this, will be a decisive turning point in world politics on multiple levels. Trump’s latest announcement is that after somehow exiting Iran, the next step will be the ‘liberation’ of Cuba. Imperialism is on a mission to destroy Cuba and its people. It is just a delusion of Trump and Marco Rubio that Cuba can be subjugated like Venezuela. The Cuban people will stand united and resist it. Cuba will never bow down. The world will stand firmly with the Cuban people.

A solidarity movement must rise in cities, villages, factories, universities, colleges, schools, libraries, playgrounds, art and cultural venues and agricultural fields, shouting as loudly as possible, ‘Cuba is Not Alone’, ‘Hands off Cuba, Hands off Raúl’. Like a clenched fist, anti-imperialist feelings should sweep the entire land.

Hasta la victoria siempre!

Venceremos, viva Cuba, viva Raúl!

Onwards to victory!