Cuban Regime Warns U.S.: "Messing with Venezuela Means Messing with Cuba"

This Friday, the Cuban regime issued a stern warning to the United States amid rising tensions in the Caribbean, following the deployment of U.S. B-52 bombers near Venezuela's coast. During a massive rally in Havana, Miguel Díaz-Canel's government reaffirmed its alliance with the Chavist movement, declaring that "messing with Venezuela means messing with Cuba."

According to a report by Cuba's Presidency on its official X account (formerly Twitter), over 50,000 people gathered on Avenida de los Presidentes in Havana's Vedado district, in front of the statue of Simón Bolívar, to show "solidarity with Chávez's homeland" and to "reject the U.S. government's militarization of the Caribbean."

Roberto Morales Ojeda, Secretary of Organization of the Communist Party, stated, "Today, Cuba once again became a hub of solidarity with Venezuela. This reaffirms a sacred principle: messing with Venezuela means messing with Cuba. We are one front, one heart in two peoples."

The event was led by Díaz-Canel himself, who handed over a "Book of Signatures" in support of Venezuela to Venezuelan official Pedro Infante, Vice President of the PSUV. According to the government, the book was signed by over four million Cubans, including the signature of General Raúl Castro Ruz.

"We defend Venezuela from here and through every collaborator involved in social missions that support its heroic people," Díaz-Canel asserted in his speech, referring to the thousands of Cuban professionals stationed in Venezuela as part of bilateral programs.

This mobilization comes at a critical time for the island, where daily power outages exceed 20 hours in some provinces, and the healthcare system is grappling with outbreaks of dengue, Oropouche fever, and chikungunya. Despite the crisis, thousands of employees from the Electric Union (UNE) were summoned to march in support of Nicolás Maduro's regime.

On social media, Cubans expressed outrage over what many see as a misguided political priority in the face of national collapse. "Why don't they march to fix the thermoelectric plants?" one user questioned on UNE's page. Another added, "Cuba is going dark while you march for Maduro. It's just a circus."

The mass gathering also served as a platform to send a message of support to the Caracas government following recent U.S. military maneuvers in the Caribbean. "We reject the imperialist war offensive against Bolívar and Chávez's homeland," Morales Ojeda declared to attendees.

Analysts believe that the warning "messing with Venezuela means messing with Cuba" signifies the regime's attempt to close ranks with its main strategic ally in Latin America amid growing international isolation and internal crises on the island.

The Cuban government maintains thousands of doctors, military advisors, technicians, and intelligence officials in Venezuela as part of bilateral agreements signed since 2000. Havana has long relied on subsidized Venezuelan oil, while Caracas has received personnel and assistance in social control, political communication, and security in return.

On the same day as the rally, the Ministry of Energy and Mines announced that more than a dozen thermoelectric plants were experiencing technical failures or were down for maintenance. Provinces such as Granma, Holguín, and Santiago de Cuba reported continuous blackouts lasting up to 22 hours.

"What an irony, so much light for a parade and we're left in the dark," a resident of Matanzas remarked on social media. "They even have electricity for marching."

While the Havana government pledges "solidarity with the Venezuelan people," millions of Cubans continue to survive in darkness, with collapsed hospitals, no potable water, and an ever-dwindling hope that power will return to those who truly need it: the citizens.