This Thursday, the United States State Department spotlighted an opinion piece by Republican Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis on their official X account. Her article, titled "America Must Confront Havana's Malign Influence," is now part of the Trump administration's public communication campaign against the Cuban regime.
The agency's tweet quoted the congresswoman directly: "The State Department recently released a report outlining Havana's espionage, subversion, and ideological influence campaign against the United States."
Within the same thread, the State Department included a graphic labeled "Cuba: Capital of 21st Century Communism," linking to the report available on their official website.
Malliotakis’ piece, published by VOZ, supports and elaborates on the 100-page report that the State Department revealed on July 20, under the guidance of Secretary Marco Rubio. Rubio stated, "For more than six decades, the Cuban regime has been the foremost sponsor of radical leftism and third-worldism in the United States. The American people deserve to know this."
The congresswoman, whose mother fled Cuba after Castro's rise to power, connects the regime's ideological influence to the 2020 disturbances in the U.S. She also references two significant espionage cases from the report: Ana Belén Montes, who was recruited by Cuban intelligence during her graduate studies at Johns Hopkins and eventually became the chief Cuba analyst at the Defense Intelligence Agency; and Víctor Manuel Rocha, who spied for Havana for nearly five decades while holding senior positions in the State Department, the National Security Council, and as ambassador to Bolivia. He received a 15-year prison sentence in April 2024.
Malliotakis also highlights organizations like The People's Forum—which hosted Miguel Díaz-Canel in New York and supports the Venceremos Brigade—CODEPINK, and the National Lawyers Guild as channels for the regime's influence within the U.S. She warns about these groups: "Cuba acts as a bridge between like-minded organizations and governments such as China, Russia, and Iran."
The article takes a critical stance on Democratic congress members who visited Cuba in 2026. In April, Pramila Jayapal and Jonathan Jackson spent five days meeting with Díaz-Canel. In July, Mark Pocan, Teresa Leger Fernández, Maxine Dexter, and Delia Ramírez also met with the Cuban leader, condemning Washington's sanctions policy.
Regarding these visits, Malliotakis remarked: "These trips risk legitimizing a dictatorship that has starved, tortured, and even killed its own people, and they are a slap in the face to political prisoners, journalists, and dissidents who continue to be persecuted."
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez dismissed the report as a "slanderous pamphlet" and accused Rubio of concocting reasons to justify military aggression against Cuba.
The State Department's amplification of the article is part of a maximum pressure policy, which has involved over 240 sanctions since January 2025 and the declaration of a national emergency on January 30, 2026, identifying the Island as an unusual threat to national security.
Malliotakis concluded her column with a warning that the State Department chose to highlight for thousands of followers: "Those who fled Cuba and Venezuela did not come to America to recreate the systems they escaped. My mother's generation fled communism seeking freedom. Our generation must ensure that such ideology never dismantles the freedoms we cherish here."
Addressing Havana's Influence and U.S. Security
What actions has the U.S. State Department taken against Cuba?
The U.S. State Department has implemented over 240 sanctions since January 2025 and declared a national emergency in January 2026, labeling Cuba as an unusual threat to national security.
Who are some notable figures mentioned in the State Department's report?
The report highlights Ana Belén Montes and Víctor Manuel Rocha, who were involved in espionage activities for Cuba within the U.S. government, holding significant positions and committing espionage over several decades.
How has the Cuban government responded to the U.S. report?
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez has dismissed the report as a "slanderous pamphlet" and accused U.S. officials, like Marco Rubio, of fabricating reasons for potential military aggression against Cuba.