Donald Trump boasts Cuba authorities ‘is about to fall’ and it’s all his doing

Donald Trump has gleefully predicted the downfall of another regime, saying the country is “going to fall” thanks to him.

He said Cuba was on the edge, adding: “We cut off all oil, all money, or we cut off everything coming in from Venezuela, which was the sole source. And they want to make a deal.”

Asked whether the United States was playing a role in the Cuban government’s demise, Trump said: “Well, what do you think? For 50 years, that’s icing on the cake. Venezuela is doing fantastically. [Delcy Rodríguez] is doing a fantastic job. The relationship with them is great.”

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Trump said the United States is in touch with Cuba’s government as instability on the island intensifies with blackouts leaving millions in darkness.

The western half of Cuba was left in darkness after power cuts hit the island nation yesterday, leaving millions of people in Havana and beyond without power as the country struggles with dwindling oil reserves.

It is the second such outage to affect Cuba’s western region in the past three months. A huge power cut affected the nation after the national grid collapsed in December.

Trump he suggested the island’s worsening situation is partly the result of U.S. pressure, including cutting off the Venezuelan oil supplies that once helped keep the lights on in Havana.

“Well, it’s because of my intervention, intervention that is happening,” Trump told Politico. “Obviously, otherwise they wouldn’t have this problem. We cut off all oil, all money, … everything coming in from Venezuela, which was the sole source.”

He gleefully took credit for the situation on the struggling island, saying: “How long have you been hearing about Cuba — Cuba, Cuba — for 50 years?” he added. “And that’s one of the small ones for me.”

Cuba gets its power from large thermoelectric plants like Antonio Guiteras and some smaller ones, which require crude oil to operate. The country produces about half of the crude needed, but has to buy the rest from other countries, which can be difficult and costly due to US sanctions. It has also depended on allies like Venezuela and Russia for cheaper fuel.

Last month, Cuba’s government implemented austere fuel-saving measures and warned that jet fuel wouldn’t be available at nine airports across the island until mid-March.

Prior to the Venezuela attack, the island already was struggling with a crumbling electric grid, generation deficits and interruptions in fuel supplies.