U.S. Aircraft Carrier Strike Group Arrives in Caribbean... Is Cuba the Next Target After Iran?

"Similar to the Maduro Arrest Operation"
"Castro Is the Kind of Person Who Would Rather Take His Own Life Than Surrender"

Associated Press Yonhap News

Military tensions surrounding Cuba have risen significantly as a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group has arrived in the Caribbean Sea. Concerns are mounting that the United States could launch a military operation similar to the one it carried out in January in Venezuela to arrest President Nicolas Maduro.

On May 21 (local time), the United States Southern Command, which oversees the Caribbean and Central and South America, announced via the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68) strike group had arrived in the Caribbean and was conducting operations. The deployment of the U.S. aircraft carrier strike group to the Caribbean immediately following the indictment of former Cuban President Raul Castro by the U.S. Department of Justice the previous day has marked the beginning of increased military pressure on Cuba.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) pointed out that a scenario similar to the operation to arrest President Maduro in January is now unfolding in Cuba. At that time, after President Maduro was indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice, a U.S. aircraft carrier was deployed off the coast of Venezuela, and a military operation was carried out. The WSJ also noted that Cuba is much closer to the U.S. mainland—about 145 kilometers away—than Venezuela, and that it takes just over an hour by plane from Miami to the Cuban capital of Havana, making a military operation potentially easier.

However, it remains uncertain whether the arrest of former President Castro, who is already 94 years old, could proceed in the same way as the operation to apprehend President Maduro. Jorge Castaneda, former Mexican Foreign Minister, told the WSJ, "There is little chance that Castro would surrender quietly to the United States," adding, "Castro is the kind of person who would sooner turn a gun on himself than surrender."

The Economist also pointed out, "Even if the United States were to arrest and bring back Castro, putting handcuffs on a 95-year-old man would not have the same dramatic political victory effect as the arrest of Maduro."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.