The Chinese Foreign Ministry responded on Tuesday to Cuban figurehead “president” Miguel Díaz-Canel predicting a “bloodbath” in the event of American action against the communist regime by offering its support to Cuba and demanding an end to American sanctions.
Díaz-Canel made his comment in response to a report by the website Axios claiming that American authorities had reason to believe that Russia and Iran had supplied hundreds of drones to the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) and that American officials were studying a response to that threat. The report also claimed that the Communist Party was considering drone strikes on Florida, among other targets. Cuba has been ruled by a violent communist insurgency since the 1959 Fidel Castro coup d’etat and is a designated state sponsor of terrorism, maintaining ties with groups such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and Hezbollah, among others.
The Cuban government, through various officials, attempted to downplay the report as absurd or ridiculous. Díaz-Canel, who serves as the face of the Cuban government, issued a statement declaring that the “threats” from the United States allegedly represented by the Axios report could lead to mass killing.
“If they [the alleged threats] are to materialize,” he wrote on social media, “they will provoke a bloodbath of incalculable consequences, plus the destructive impact on peace and regional stability.”
“Cuba, which already suffers multidimensional aggression from the U.S., does have the absolute and legitimate right to defend itself from a bellicose assault,” he continued, “which cannot be logically or honestly interpreted as an excuse to impose war against the noble Cuban people.”
Several other officials, including Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez repeated the claim that Cuba was prepared for taking action in the name of “legitimate defense” against America.
These statements follow months of increased tension between America and Cuba after the Communist Party lost a critical economic patron in deposed Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro. Since Maduro’s arrest by U.S. forces, the administration of President Donald Trump has increased both humanitarian aid to the Cuban people and sanctions on the Castro regime, making the lives of the elites more difficult while seeking to offer a helping hand to the impoverished and repressed Cuban population. Most recently, the State Department revealed that it had privately offered $100 million in humanitarian aid for the Cuban people, to be distributed with the support of the Catholic Church, but the Cuban church refused it.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry entertained a question about Cuba during its regular press conference on Tuesday in which it was directly asked about Díaz-Canel’s “bloodbath” comment. Spokesman Lin Jian did not condemn the belligerent language, instead offering support to the Castro regime and demanding America help prop it up.
“China opposes illicit and unilateral sanctions that have no basis in international law, and firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security,” the spokesman said, according to a translation by the Chinese government. “We urge the U.S. to immediately stop its blockade or any other form of coercion and pressure against Cuba, and stop violating Cuban people’s rights to survive and thrive.”
The Chinese government – the world’s largest Communist Party – has long offered words of support to Cuba. It has also offered a financial lifeline to sustain the lifestyles of communist elite on the island, though with decreasing frequency. Cuba is a member of China’s “Belt and Road” predatory lending scam and received associate partner status in 2025 within BRICS, the China-led anti-American security and economic bloc. Following the arrest of Maduro, also a Chinese client, the Castro regime sent Foreign Ministry Rodríguez to Beijing seeking backing in the face of expected fuel shortages now that Havana’s supply of Venezuelan oil was cut off.
The meeting between Rodríguez and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi generated some words of support from China, similar to the Foreign Ministry’s statement this week, but does not appear to have resulted in any material support from the world’s second-largest economy to Cuba. Wang specifically stated that China would only help Cuba “to the best of our ability,” without suggesting any specific aid.
Lin, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, similarly stated in February that “China firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding national sovereignty and security and opposing external interference” and would “do our best to provide support and assistance to Cuba.”
This week, reports suggested that China was actually providing material support through the massive sale of solar panel technology, which human rights researchers have for years linked to state-sponsored slavery in China.
“Imports of Chinese-made solar panels and batteries have surged over the past year, while Chinese investment has helped Cuba build dozens of new solar parks, the news outlet reported, citing data from energy think tank Ember,” the Times of India, citing Cuban regime-friendly CNN, reported this week. The reports did not indicate exactly how much Cuba is paying for these panels, likely purchased under the Belt and Road Initiative, which often relies on predatory lending.
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