CIA director's visit to Cuba echoes past memories of U.S. in Latin America

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CIA Director John Ratcliffe makes a surprise visit to Cuba as the spy agency calls on the nation to make "fundamental changes." Cuba says it has run out of fuel and is suffering massive blackouts.

SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:

CIA director John Ratcliffe made a surprise visit to Cuba on Thursday, and he delivered a strong warning from President Trump to Cuba's communist leaders. This comes as Cuba says it has run out of fuel and is suffering near total power blackouts. For more on this and how it fits into Trump's larger view of Latin America, NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre is with me in the studio.

Hi, Greg.

GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Hi, Sacha.

PFEIFFER: I think right out of the gate, we have to acknowledge that it is a bit strange that, given CIA's history in Cuba - that this trip has been described as a diplomatic visit.

MYRE: Yeah, when you hear the CIA and Cuba in the same sentence, it certainly brings up memories of covert attempts to overthrow the Cuban government, as the CIA did multiple times with Fidel Castro. Now, I spoke with Peter Kornbluh. He's a Cuba specialist at the National Security Archive, a research group based at George Washington University. He also co-authored a book on the history of secret talks between the U.S. and Cuba.

PETER KORNBLUH: It is a historical irony that the CIA director would be sent on a diplomatic mission to issue a do-or-die ultimatum to the Cuban government. In many ways, the CIA may end up accomplishing diplomatically what it has sought to do covertly.

PFEIFFER: Greg, what do we know about the CIA director's visit?

MYRE: Yeah, Ratcliffe's trip wasn't announced in advance, but the CIA said afterwards that he flew to Havana on Thursday and had even released photos of the meeting. Now, a CIA official speaking on condition of anonymity said Ratcliffe met the head of Cuba's intelligence services and delivered a stern message from President Trump. And that message was, quote, "the United States is prepared to seriously engage on economic and security issues but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes."

PFEIFFER: And what is the Cuban government saying about this?

MYRE: So Cuba is not saying how it might deal with U.S. demands, but it says it's not a threat to the U.S., and it also said it's never supported any hostile activity against the U.S. Now, the U.S. says Cuba allows Russia and China to conduct spying operations from the island, which is less than 100 miles from Florida. Cuba denies this, though it has had a long, close relationship with Russia in particular.

PFEIFFER: Greg, you've covered, in January, the Trump administration ousting Venezuela's leader, Nicolás Maduro. Should we be thinking that this is what is going to unfold for Cuba as well, potentially?

MYRE: You know, quite possibly. Based on previous comments by Trump, the concessions he may be looking for would include a change in Cuba's leadership and an overhaul of its socialist economic policies. Though it's not clear what Trump might consider sufficient. We should note that Trump dispatched Ratcliffe to Venezuela in January, less than two weeks after U.S. troops seized the country's president, Nicolás Maduro, who remains in U.S. custody in New York. Now, Ratcliffe laid out what the U.S. expected of Venezuela at that time, and the Trump administration describes the relationships in generally positive terms, though it's mostly the same people as before, minus Maduro. One other key note - Venezuela supplied Cuba with oil. The U.S. now controls Venezuela's oil industry and stopped shipments to Cuba. Cuba's government said Wednesday it is flat out of oil, and the country is suffering blackouts of 20 hours a day or more.

PFEIFFER: Greg, when you look at President Trump's broader approach to Latin America, where does this pressure campaign against Cuba fit into it?

MYRE: Yeah. Trump says he's pursuing his version of the Monroe Doctrine. In Trump's view, this means the U.S. should dominate the western hemisphere. And he's certainly acting on that. We saw the capture of Maduro in January, the ongoing airstrikes against suspected drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Pacific, tariffs on friendly countries throughout the hemisphere. Trump has a full plate with this summit in China and the ongoing war in Iran, yet he's pressing ahead in Latin America, and he's now focused on Cuba.

PFEIFFER: NPR's Greg Myre.

Thank you.

MYRE: Sure thing, Sacha.

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