The Trump administration has always had a knack for keeping things interesting on the international stage. Recently, they’ve decided to turn up the heat on Cuba’s communist regime by expanding sanctions. President Trump is signaling a tougher stance on Havana, with light-hearted musings that sound like plans straight out of a Hollywood blockbuster. At a club in West Palm Beach, he imagined sending in an aircraft carrier just a stone’s throw from the Cuban shore, thinking it might prompt the regime to wave the white flag. One could almost imagine the Cuban leaders standing on the seashore, binoculars in hand, muttering “we give up” at the sight of the USS Abraham Lincoln, as if it’s that simple.
The simplistic suggestion aside, what’s clear is that Trump’s administration is sending a strong message that they’re not messing around. They are pressing hard with diplomatic and economic strategies, as well as hinting that military action is not off the table. Although it might sound like an action-packed movie script, there’s a serious undertone. Cuba, struggling without its political buddy Venezuela, has found itself in a tough spot, and this administration seems determined to keep turning up the pressure.
After Venezuela, the plan appears to be to curb Cuba’s relations with heavy-hitters like Russia and China. Of course, those are the two countries on which Cuba has relied for economic support and whose intelligence operations in the country are no secret. It seems the Trump administration is playing a game of geopolitical chess, trying to cut off Cuba’s major allies at the knees to tighten control in the Western Hemisphere. With such a strategy, Trump is banking on bringing those still stuck in communist regimes closer to embracing freedom or at the very least, causing them some discomfort.
In the meantime, there’s another shakeup on the international sand table. The Trump administration has announced a reduction of U.S. troops in Germany, pulling out about 5,000 service members. Sure, Germany is one of those places soldiers seem to love, probably for the sausages and the autobahn, but pulling troops out has caused some hand-wringing. Critics fret that this move might upset the delicate balance of security in Europe, asserting it could play right into the hands of Vladimir Putin. But come on, does anyone seriously think Putin sees 5,000 fewer troops in Germany as an invitation to, say, unleash a secret plan to take over Europe?
Let’s be real: President Trump is known for shaking things up, and he’s got no patience for what he sees as freeloaders. Trump’s not-so-subtle message to European allies has been to get them to pay their fair share on defense. On one level, we can admire the businessman’s approach to foreign policy—cutting costs and maximizing efficiency isn’t just for boardrooms. Despite the naysayers, the intended message to NATO allies and adversaries alike is quite clear: this administration plays by its own rules. Whether it’s cracking down on communist countries or adjusting America’s military footprint in Europe, Trump’s diplomatic dance is purely his own choreography.
