The US Department of Defense has in recent weeks studied a range of military options for potential action against Cuba, including an airborne assault involving the 101st Airborne Division, according to US officials cited by American media. The planning, which was discussed at a late-June concept-of-operations briefing, does not indicate that President Donald Trump or the Pentagon has ordered an operation. Any such move would face significant logistical hurdles, the officials noted, because a substantial portion of US military attention and offensive capabilities is currently directed at operations against Iran.

The contingency planning unfolds against a backdrop of intensifying US pressure on Havana. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called on Cuba’s leadership to commit to political and economic reforms “before it is too late,” while warning that Washington will use all available tools to counter what it describes as national-security threats posed by the Cuban government. The administration has expanded sanctions, adding the tourism ministry and other state entities to its blacklists, and has maintained a naval blockade to disrupt energy supplies. In a June interview, President Trump said an operation to change Cuba’s leadership was “possible,” drawing a parallel with the January 2026 capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Viewed from Washington, the planning is part of a broader campaign that has already seen direct military interventions in Venezuela and, alongside Israel, in Iran.

Havana rejects the US accusations. President Miguel Díaz-Canel has stated that Cuba does not represent a threat to US national security and that it is the United States that constitutes a threat. The Cuban government has not publicly commented on the latest reports of military planning, but it has consistently framed US sanctions and diplomatic pressure as an illegal campaign aimed at overthrowing its political system. The State Department’s push for a technocratic government willing to enact reforms has stalled, with Rubio accusing the “corrupt elite” of clinging to a “morally bankrupt Marxist ideology.”

The dossier remains at an early stage. The Pentagon’s acting press secretary declined to comment on “hypothetical military operations.” US officials told media that a shift of focus toward Cuba is unlikely for now, given the resumption of military operations against Iran and the diversion of aircraft, intelligence assets, and other resources to the Middle East. The 101st Airborne Division, the only unit trained for such a mission, is not known to have been placed on alert. For the moment, the planning is described as routine contingency work, with no indication of an imminent decision.