OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
9:18 AM – Friday, May 15, 2026
Central Intelligence Administration (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe led a U.S. delegation to meet with Cuban officials in Havana, according to the Cuban government.
“Following the request submitted by the US government that a delegation presided over by the CIA Director John Ratcliffe be received in Havana, the Revolutionary Directorate approved the realization of this visit and the meeting with its counterpart from the Ministry of the Interior,” stated Granma, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba’s (PCC) official newspaper, on Thursday.
The communist party insisted that Cuba does not pose a threat to U.S. national security, despite President Donald Trump’s executive orders classifying Cuba as a national security threat and imposing sanctions on Cuba, as well as foreign entities or individuals aiding Cuba’s security or intelligence.
“The evidence provided by the Cuban side and the exchanges held with the US delegation categorically demonstrated that Cuba does not constitute a threat to U.S. national security, nor are there legitimate reasons to include it on the list of countries that supposedly sponsor terrorism,” the statement read.
The state paper argued that its government instead had a history of “confronting and unequivocally condemning terrorism in all its forms.”
“Once again it was evident that the Island does not harbor, support, finance or permit terrorist or extremist organizations; nor are there any foreign military or intelligence bases on its territory, and it has never supported any hostile activity against the U.S.,” the statement continued.
The Biden administration removed Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism in January 2025, but President Donald Trump reinstated the designation days later, on his first day back in office.
Ratcliffe met with Cuban Interior Minister Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas, the head of Cuba’s intelligence services, and Raulito Rodríguez Castro, a government official who is the grandson of former President Raúl Castro.
According to a CBS News report on Friday, the U.S. government was also taking steps toward indicting 94-year-old Castro, brother of former Cuban President Fidel Castro, who led the revolution that established Cuba as a communist state.
The indictment would focus on Cuba’s deadly 1996 shootdown of planes flown by the humanitarian group, Brothers to the Rescue, the outlet reported, citing U.S. officials.
Despite this, Ratcliffe traveled to Havana to deliver Trump’s message to the younger Castro that the U.S. is “prepared to seriously engage on economic and security issues, but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes.”
This follows a Truth Social post from Trump this week about the state of the country.
“No Republican has ever spoken to me about Cuba, which is a failed country and only heading in one direction — down! Cuba is asking for help, and we are going to talk!!! In the meantime, I’m off to China!” he wrote on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, the State Department restated its offer to provide aid to the people of Cuba, which would include funding for “free and fast satellite internet and $100 million in direct humanitarian assistance.”
“The regime refuses to allow the United States to provide this assistance to the Cuban people, who are in desperate need of assistance due to the failures of Cuba’s corrupt regime,” the department said.
It explained that the funds “would be distributed in coordination with the Catholic Church and other reliable independent humanitarian organizations.”
“The decision rests with the Cuban regime to accept our offer of assistance or deny critical living-saving aid and ultimately be accountable to the Cuban people for standing in the way of critical assistance,” the statement concluded.
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