Marco Rubio accuses the Cuban Regime of helping shape the far left in the US and the West

Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused the Cuban regime on Thursday of having played a central role in the formation and expansion of far-left movements in the United States, the Western Hemisphere, and other Western countries, during the opening of the Ministerial Meeting on the Resurgence of Political Terrorism, organized by the State Department.

Speaking before representatives from more than 60 countries, Rubio argued that the threat of far-left political terrorism has been underestimated for decades and requires a coordinated response among allies.

"The Cuban regime's vast intelligence and ideological network helped shape the far left in our country and in our hemisphere, and remains inextricably linked to far-left groups and movements throughout the West and beyond its borders," stated the U.S. Secretary of State.

"A distinct and singular evil"

In his inaugural address, Rubio described far-left political terrorism as a threat with deep ideological roots and rejected the idea that it is a new phenomenon.

"This is a distinct and singular evil. It has always been driven by hatred—above all, by a hatred of civilization itself. It is a rebellion of the worst against the best, a rebellion of the weak and the cowardly against the strong and the good."

The Secretary of State argued that those who promote this ideology "cannot build, cannot create, cannot achieve great things" and that they seek to "destroy those who can."

Rubio added that this movement can take on different labels depending on the historical context:

"It can present itself under different slogans and ideologies depending on the place and time. They may call themselves anti-capitalists, anti-imperialists, communists, anarchists, or Marxists, but their fundamental nature is always the same."

He concluded that passage by describing it as: "A poisonous resentment cloaked in the language of equality, justice, and liberation."

Cuba, Iran, and transnational networks

In addition to holding the Cuban regime responsible for its ideological influence, Rubio asserted that Iran maintains growing ties with radical left-wing organizations.

According to the secretary of state, networks backed by Tehran are "increasingly closely linked" to militant left-wing groups, while organizations such as Antifa operate as transnational networks that coordinate activities between Europe and the Americas through encrypted platforms to share propaganda and funding.

Rubio argued that for decades, Western counterterrorism policy focused most of its resources on combating jihadist terrorism, while neglecting far-left political violence.

To provide historical backing for his argument, he recalled the support provided by Fidel Castro's regime to Latin American insurgent movements and asserted that "tens of thousands of Marxist guerrillas" were trained in camps established in Cuba. He also cited organizations such as the FARC, the ELN, the Tupamaros, the Montoneros, the Italian Red Brigades, and the German Red Army Faction as examples of this tradition of political violence.

Statistics presented by Washington

During his remarks, Rubio asserted that far-left political terrorism is experiencing an international resurgence.

According to data released by the State Department, far-left groups were responsible for 63% of the anti-government attacks or plots recorded in the United States during 2025, as well as three of the four deaths related to attacks against the government that occurred that year.

Likewise, the secretary maintained that between 1970 and 1980, 93% of the terrorist attacks recorded in the West were carried out by far-left organizations, and he pointed to recent increases in radical violence in countries such as Germany and Greece, where — he claimed — leftist and anarchist groups account for the majority of incidents of political violence.

Rubio's statements come just days after the Trump administration expanded sanctions against the Cuban regime with a new round of measures targeting state entities linked to Havana's repressive apparatus, intensifying pressure on the communist regime.