Cuba Confirms Former President Raul Castro Involved in Ongoing Talks with the US

Cuba has stated that former Cuban President Raul Castro is involved in ongoing talks with the United States.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel confirmed this development.

This statement from Diaz-Canel comes amid heightened bilateral tensions. Diaz-Canel said on Wednesday that the talks are in the initial stages and that the nationwide blackout is worsening due to the oil blockade imposed by US President Donald Trump.

In a video interview shared through state media, Diaz-Canel also predicted that this process would take a long time.

Although Diaz-Canel became president in 2018, the 94-year-old revolutionary leader Raul Castro is still considered the most influential figure in the nation. Former President Castro held historic talks with former US President Barack Obama in 2014.

This paved the way for reopening embassies and restoring diplomatic relations. In late January, Trump threatened to impose tariffs on countries selling or supplying oil to Cuba, signaling an attempt to change the country's political model.

‘Castro is one of those who guided how this dialogue process should be conducted in collaboration with me and with the Communist Party, the government, and other branches of the state,’ he added.