Cuba insists it is a U.S. ally, not threat, in war on drugs

Felix Jose Morfi stands by his solar-powered water heater system he set up on his home's roof in Regla, Havana province, Cuba, Thursday. Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)

HAVANA -- Cuba on Tuesday portrayed itself as an ally in President Donald Trump’s war on drug trafficking and warned that a U.S. energy blockade is sapping Havana’s efforts to help in this drive.

Trump has accused the communist government in Cuba of enabling drug trafficking through its support of Venezuela. U.S. commandos ousted and captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro on Jan. 3 and Trump is now trying to starve Cuba of oil as it ups pressure on Havana.

“We insist that Cuba is not a threat to the United States,” said Col. Juan Carlos Poey, head of the anti-narcotics department at the Interior Ministry.

He said the U.S. energy blockade -- Trump has halted Venezuelan shipments of oil to Cuba and threatened sanctions against any country that makes such deliveries -- is hurting Cuba’s efforts to fight regional drug trafficking.

Poey described Cuba as a “containing wall in the sea” to counter shipments of cocaine from South America to the United States.