In a report published Sunday by Axios, based on declassified (still classified per source) US intelligence, the outlet has alleged that Cuba has acquired over 300 military-grade attack drones, and that Havana is currently holding internal discussions to deploy these unmanned systems against the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay, US maritime vessels operating in the region, and even targets within the US state of Florida.
This explosive claim surfaces at a moment of already simmering bilateral friction between Washington and Havana, feeding growing speculation that the Trump administration is actively building a public and intelligence case to justify future military action against the Caribbean island’s communist government.
A senior unnamed US official speaking to Axios emphasized that the development has amplified the Trump administration’s concerns over evolving threats from Cuba, pointing both to the proliferation of drone warfare technology in the region and the confirmed presence of Iranian military advisers operating on Cuban soil. “When we think about those types of technologies being that close, and a range of bad actors from terror groups to drug cartels to Iranians to the Russians, it’s concerning,” the official was quoted as saying. “It’s a growing threat.”
US officials told Axios that Cuba began sourcing attack drones from both Russia and Iran in 2023, and continues to actively pursue additional purchases of the technology to expand its fleet.
Havana has forcefully rejected the allegations, framing the United States as the unprovoked aggressor in the escalating standoff and positioning Cuba as a victim of US aggression. Writing on the social platform X, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio denounced the report as part of a baseless propaganda campaign. “The anti-Cuban campaign aimed at justifying, without any excuse, a military attack against Cuba is intensifying by the hour, with increasingly implausible accusations,” he stated. “The United States is the aggressor. Cuba is the country under attack, acting in self-defense.”
The Axios report comes just days after CIA Director John Ratcliffe conducted an official visit to Havana, a trip that took place amid widespread, ongoing power outages across the island that Cuban authorities blame on the Trump administration’s strict fuel blockade. During the visit, Axios reports that Ratcliffe issued a direct warning to Cuban officials against initiating any hostile action against the US. “Director Ratcliffe made clear that Cuba can no longer serve as a platform for adversaries to advance hostile agendas in our hemisphere,” an unnamed CIA official told the outlet.
Cuba has been locked in a geopolitical standoff with successive US administrations dating back to the 1960s, following the Cuban Revolution that brought the communist government to power. The US state of Florida, located roughly 90 miles off Cuba’s northern coast, is home to a large, politically powerful Cuban exile community that has long pushed for hardline US policy against Havana.
Earlier this month, former President Donald Trump escalated rhetoric dramatically, stating that the United States would “take over” the Caribbean island “almost immediately.” He has also previously framed Cuba as the next target for US military action, following a 2020s US operation that removed longtime Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro from power. Additional US media reports have also confirmed that US federal authorities are currently pursuing criminal indictment plans against 94-year-old Raul Castro, the brother of late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and former Cuban president.