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As the United Nations General Assembly opens in New York, we speak with senior Cuban diplomat Carlos Fernández de Cossío, who says the Trump administration is seeking to “asphyxiate the people of Cuba into submission.” On Friday, millions in Cuba lost power in what was at least the sixth major blackout since President Trump cut off fuel shipments to the island in January. The fuel blockade comes on top of the six-decade-long U.S. economic embargo and countless attempts to topple the communist government.

“We will do all we can to stop any nation, the U.S. or any nation, from taking over Cuba,” says Fernández de Cossío, who has served as deputy Cuban foreign minister since 2022.

This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report. I’m Amy Goodman in New York. Juan González is in Chicago.

As world leaders gather for the United Nations General Assembly here in New York, we turn now to look at Cuba, which is facing a growing humanitarian crisis amidst an escalating economic war waged by the Trump administration. On Friday, millions in Cuba lost power in what was at least the sixth major blackout since President Trump cut off fuel shipments to the island in January. The fuel blockade comes on top of the six-decade-long U.S. embargo. Residents of Havana say they have no water or electricity in their homes.

VALENTIN PARRA: [translated] It’s very bad for everyone, because everyone gets desperate in a house without water and without light. It’s a phenomenon that isn’t seen anywhere else in the world, only here. And when people don’t have water — look, I myself was without water for 15 days, without water or light for 15 days. The luck is that I could bathe over here and bathe on the other side. But tell me: What does someone do who doesn’t have that possibility?

VALENTIN PARRA: [translated] It’s very bad for everyone, because everyone gets desperate in a house without water and without light. It’s a phenomenon that isn’t seen anywhere else in the world, only here. And when people don’t have water — look, I myself was without water for 15 days, without water or light for 15 days. The luck is that I could bathe over here and bathe on the other side. But tell me: What does someone do who doesn’t have that possibility?

AMY GOODMAN: Meanwhile, the CIA recently formed a new secret Cuba task force as part of a widening U.S. effort to pressure Cuba. According to the Times, the CIA is adding case officers who recruit and manage spies, as well as officers who conduct cyber operations and specialize in covert influence operations.

The U.S. has made many attempts to overthrow the Cuban government over the past 65 years, hundreds of attempts. In 1960, the CIA formed a Cuba task force that oversaw the failed Bay of Pigs invasion on April 17th, 1961. The Guardian recently reported allies of President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have already begun vying for control of Cuba’s assets if the Cuban government falls under the U.S. pressure. The Wall Street Journal just published an article headlined “The Backroom Meetings in Miami Where Cuba’s Future Is Being Plotted.”

To talk about all of this, we’re joined by Cuba’s Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío.

Welcome back to Democracy Now!

Trump’s Brutal Blockade on Cuba Harkens Back to the Days of US Invasions

CARLOS FERNÁNDEZ DE COSSÍO: It is an honor.

AMY GOODMAN: Thanks so much for being with us. I’m glad we’re within the 25-mile zone that you’re allowed to travel in in New York. Right? Twenty-five miles from Columbus Circle?

CARLOS FERNÁNDEZ DE COSSÍO: Columbus Circle, yes.

AMY GOODMAN: Number one, if you can talk about what is — as the foreign minister addresses the United Nations, what’s the Cuban government’s message to the Trump administration as it tightens the economic sanctions and embargo?

CARLOS FERNÁNDEZ DE COSSÍO: We will be speaking to the international community at the U.N., not necessarily to the U.S. government, but........

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