Trump says he wants to ‘get Cuba done’ when asked about use of military force

President Donald Trump grew frustrated earlier this year that the Cuban government was holding on to power despite months of sustained U.S. pressure, NBC News previously reported.Aaron Schwartz / Getty ShareAdd NBC News to GoogleNov. 13, 2026, 9:27 AM ESTBy Rebecca Shabad, Megan Shannon and Caroline KennyPresident Donald Trump signaled in a new interview that he could take military action to topple Cuba’s communist government before he leaves office.

“I want to get Cuba done before I leave you,” Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Thursday when asked if he would order the use of military force against Cuba to free the nation.

Trump said his administration is “watching it very closely” and Cuba is “doing very poorly,” calling it a “failed” country.

The president said he would “certainly consider” taking military action against Cuba.

“Frankly, I’d love to be able to do it for the people, for the Cubans that came and were treated really badly, and they came to America,” he said.

Speaking about the Cuban government during an impromptu White House news conference Monday, Trump said, “I would imagine it will fall fairly soon.” At a Conservative Political Action Conference event at Mar-a-Lago last week, he said Secretary of State Marco Rubio is “going to work on Cuba” and joked “we’re going to drop him by parachute into Cuba.”

Trump made similar comments about Rubio during a campaign rally in Texas in late October, saying, “We’ll drop him in the middle of Cuba. He’ll solve that problem in about two minutes. No, Cuba’s coming our way, just like everything else is coming our way because we are a respected country again.”

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The war between Russia and Ukraine also has seen no resolution despite Trump’s repeated statements during his presidential campaign and since taking office that it would end soon.

The president suggested earlier this year that his administration would get involved in Cuba. He said in February, for example, that U.S. talks with Havana could lead to a “friendly takeover.”

NBC News reported in May that Trump had grown frustrated at the time that the Cuban government was holding on to power despite months of sustained U.S. pressure.

Rebecca ShabadRebecca Shabad is a politics reporter for NBC News based in Washington.

Megan Shannon is an Associate Producer for the White House Unit.

Caroline Kenny is a White House producer for NBC News.