What to Know Before Trump Attacks Cuba episode artwork

EPISODE · May 8, 2026 · 50 MIN

What to Know Before Trump Attacks Cuba

from The World Unpacked · host Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

There’s been remarkably little public debate about a potential U.S. attack on Cuba.  President Trump said last week that he “will be taking over” Cuba “almost immediately”—and similar threats led to military action in both Venezuela and Iran. Javier Corrales, a political scientist at Amherst College and the son of Cuban exiles, joins The World Unpacked to game out this crisis. Javier and host Jon Bateman discuss Cuba’s economic vulnerability, its political staying power, and why Trump might wind up making a deal with the Castros very similar to one made by Barack Obama. Host: Follow Jon on X: https://x.com/JonKBateman  Guest: Javier Corrales: https://x.com/jcorrales2011   

Javier Corrales on Rubio vs. Trump, Castro vs. Diaz-Canel, and economic weakness vs. political endurance.

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What to Know Before Trump Attacks Cuba

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This episode was published on May 8, 2026.

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There’s been remarkably little public debate about a potential U.S. attack on Cuba.  President Trump said last week that he “will be taking over” Cuba “almost immediately”—and similar threats led to military action in both Venezuela and Iran. Javier...

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