President Donald Trump predicted late on Sunday that Cuba was “ready to fall” after US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, warning that Havana can no longer rely on Caracas for security and oil.
Trump said Cuba’s fate is now directly tied to Maduro’s ouster and the collapse of Venezuela’s ability to finance allies in the region.
Asked if he was considering U.S. action in Cuba, Trump said: “I think it’s just going to fall. I don’t think we need any action. It looks like it’s going to fall. It’s going to go down.”
The president’s comments during a press call with reporters aboard Air Force One come after the arrest of Maduro and his wife on Saturday on charges of a narco-terrorist conspiracy. The daring operation has sent shockwaves through allied governments in the region, with Cuban officials calling for demonstrations in support of Venezuela and accusing the US of violating its sovereignty.
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President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during the flight on Air Force One, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, as he returns to Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
U.S. officials say Cuban security forces have played a central role in keeping Maduro in power. Foreign Minister Marco Rubio said Cuban agents effectively directed Venezuela’s internal intelligence and security operations – including personally guarding Maduro and monitoring loyalty within his government.
Protesters gather outside the White House, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Washington, after the US captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a military operation. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)
“It was the Cubans who guarded Maduro,” Rubio said. “He wasn’t guarded by Venezuelan bodyguards. He had Cuban bodyguards.”
The Cuban government acknowledged on Sunday that 32 Cuban soldiers and police officers were killed in the US operation in Venezuela, marking the first official death toll released by Havana. Cuban state media said the officers were deployed at the request of Caracas and announced two days of national mourning.
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Trump confirmed the Cuban casualties as he traveled back to Washington.
“Many Cubans were killed yesterday,” he said. “There was a lot of death on the other side. No death on our side.”
Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores are facing a “worst case scenario” in US custody, with federal charges on drug and weapons charges, according to an expert. (Juan BARRETO/AFP via Getty Images)
Trump also targeted neighboring Colombia, accusing its leaders of fueling drug trafficking to the US
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“Colombia is very sick, run by a sick man who loves to make cocaine and sell it to the United States,” Trump said, adding that the country won’t be doing this for a very long time.
President of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro speaks during a military ceremony commemorating the 200th anniversary of the awarding of the ‘Sword of Peru’ to Venezuelan independence hero Simón Bolívar on November 25, 2025 in Caracas, Venezuela. (Jesus Vargas/Getty Images)
He suggested the US is prepared to act against drug trafficking networks operating by land and sea, citing recent bans.
Trump has also revived his long-standing focus on Greenland, arguing that the Arctic is critical to US security amid growing Russian and Chinese activity.
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“We need Greenland from a national security perspective,” Trump said. “Greenland is littered with Russian and Chinese ships everywhere.”
Trump framed Saturday’s operation as part of a broader effort to reassert U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere, invoking the Monroe Doctrine and warning that hostile regimes can no longer rely on each other for survival.
Maduro will be arraigned in federal court in New York on Monday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
