The Pentagon has developed preliminary military options for potential action against Cuba, including plans for a large-scale air assault led by the Army's , according to a CBS News report citing multiple U.S. officials familiar with the discussions.
The officials said the planning does not indicate that President Donald Trump has decided to authorize military action and stressed that an attack is unlikely in the near term as U.S. forces remain heavily engaged in the renewed conflict with Iran.
The options were reportedly discussed during a concept-of-operations briefing held in late June, a routine Pentagon process used to evaluate possible military contingencies, including troop requirements, logistics, mission objectives and risks, as CBS News reports.
The reported planning comes as the Trump administration has intensified economic and diplomatic pressure on Havana while publicly keeping military options on the table if negotiations fail.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly said Washington prefers a negotiated transition to a technocratic government willing to implement political and economic reforms. But the administration has continued expanding sanctions against entities tied to Cuba's military-controlled economy, including the GAESA conglomerate, the Ministry of Tourism and state-owned energy companies.
According to the CBS News report, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has also warned that Cuba would be "inviting the kind of confrontation" it "could not stand" if it acquired weapons capable of threatening the U.S. naval base at Guantánamo Bay or the American homeland.
The military planning also follows President Trump's comments earlier this week that his administration was investigating whether Iran had stored drones or missiles in Cuba. "If they have them, and it's very possible that they do, we'll take care of it," Trump said Monday, adding that officials were "looking into" the claims while acknowledging they "may be so, or it may not."
His remarks followed an Axios report citing classified U.S. intelligence that Cuba had acquired more than 300 military drones from Russia and Iran since 2023 and had discussed contingency plans involving Guantánamo Bay and other U.S. targets.
