‘We’re Freeing Cuba’: Says Trump After Ex-Cuban President Raul Castro Is Indicted

Last Updated:May 21, 2026, 03:27 IST

Trump vows to help Cuban people after US indicts Raúl Castro over 1996 downing of exile group planes, Cuba denounces charges as political, tensions risk rising.

Trump vows to help Cuban people after US indicts Raúl Castro over 1996 downing of exile group planes, Cuba denounces charges as political, tensions risk rising. (Image: AFP)

US President Donald Trump said the United States would help the Cuban people and was “freeing up Cuba” following the indictment of former Cuban President Raúl Castro in connection with the 1996 downing of two aircraft operated by a Miami-based exile group.

Speaking to reporters, Trump said Washington had deep expertise on Cuba, citing the presence of US intelligence operations and the Cuban heritage of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

“We’re going to help the Cuban people out. We’re freeing up Cuba,” Trump said, according to a video shared by the US Department of State.

Trump also stressed that the US approach toward Cuba would remain humanitarian in nature and said there would be no escalation in tensions.

“We are there to help the families and the people… On a humanitarian basis, we are there to help,” he said, while describing Cuba as a struggling nation facing severe economic challenges.

The comments came hours after former Cuban President Raúl Castro was indicted in the United States over his alleged role in the 1996 shooting down of two civilian aircraft belonging to the Miami-based organisation Brothers to the Rescue, according to US media reports.

The indictment, reportedly returned by a Florida grand jury and later unsealed, accuses Castro of conspiracy to kill US nationals, destruction of aircraft and four counts of murder.

The case relates to a February 1996 incident in which four Americans — Carlos Costa, Armando Alejandre Jr., Mario de la Peña and Pablo Morales — were killed when Cuban military aircraft allegedly shot down two planes over international waters.

Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the indictment during an event in Miami commemorating victims of the incident.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel strongly criticised the move, calling the indictment politically motivated and accusing Washington of using legal actions to justify pressure against Cuba.

In a statement posted on social media, Díaz-Canel said the indictment lacked legal basis and reflected US frustration with the resilience of Cuba’s political system.

The development risks adding fresh strain to already tense US-Cuba relations, with Havana rejecting the allegations while Washington frames the case as a long-delayed pursuit of accountability.

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