Historic: the head of the Southern Command holds a surprise meeting with Castro's generals in the perimeter of Guantanamo Bay

Gen. Francis Donovan, commander in chief of the Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), held an exceptional meeting at the perimeter of the Guantanamo military facility with senior officers of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba.

According to the information, first disclosed exclusively by Reuters and then validated by the Southern Command itself through its official channels, Gen. Donovan discussed directly issues related to operational security with the Castro delegation, which was headed by Major General Roberto Legrá Sotolongo, first deputy minister and chief of the island's General Staff.

The meeting represents an event without recent precedent in the history of the base and coincides with a climate of deep uncertainty in Havana's circles of power in the face of the firmness of U.S. foreign policy.

Perimeter assessment and deterrence in the field

Parallel to the contact with the dictatorship's emissaries, General Donovan led a rigorous technical inspection of the military station's defensive lines.

Reports detailed that the deliberations focused on force protection, the integrity of the deployed troops and their families, as well as the operational readiness of the units for any contingency in the region.

Donovan's deployment to the island comes just weeks after an unusual visit by CIA director, John Ratcliffe, to the Cuban capital.

These actions are aligned with the guidelines set by President Donald Trump, who has persistently pointed out that the dismantling of the totalitarian influence in the Caribbean constitutes a priority objective of his mandate, suggesting an intensification of the pressure measures once the logistical operations in the Middle East theater of operations are concluded.

Encirclement of the socialist axis in the region

Washington's determination vis-à-vis the historical antagonists in the region has translated into far-reaching legal and operational actions.

Last May 20, the U.S. justice formally indicted dictator Raul Castro on four counts of homicide linked to the downing of the civilian planes of the exile organization Brothers to the Rescue in 1996.

This judicial offensive complements the precedent set last January 3, when U.S. special forces raided Caracas to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and transfer him to New York to face charges of drug trafficking and terrorism.

The official stance against the Cuban regime has been forcefully reinforced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has repeatedly denounced the national security risk posed by the existence of a communist failed state just 90 miles off the coast of Florida.