Cuba: US plans to indict Raul Castro
Newshour
BBC
4.2 • 1.1K Ratings
🗓️ 15 May 2026
⏱️ 43 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
CIA chief makes rare trip to Cuba as oil terminals run dry, meanwhile US media reports say Washington is preparing criminal charges against its former leader Raul Castro.
Also in the programme: why nationalist vigilante groups are spreading across Russia; and a French museum holds a display of famous art works from the Second World War in order to reunite them with their rightful owners.
(Image: A vintage car passes by images of late Cuban President Fidel Castro, Cuba's former President Raul Castro and Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel displayed on a billboard in Havana. Credit: REUTERS/Norlys Perez)
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:09.2 | Hello and welcome to News Hour from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:13.2 | I'm Paul Henley. We're coming to you live from London. |
| 0:16.3 | Coming up on the programme, a musician with Parkinson's disease makes the case for artificial intelligence. |
| 0:22.9 | The ownership debate is critically important, but at the same time, I do think the potential for music therapy, for rehabilitation, for education in these areas, I think the potential of this technology, if shaped right, is profound. |
| 0:46.0 | More on that towards the end of the program. This is News Hour. |
| 0:47.1 | Now the Trump administration has made no secret of wanting to intervene in the communist stronghold in the Caribbean that is the island of Cuba. |
| 0:56.0 | Donald Trump himself has more than once referred to taking Cuba, and perhaps nothing spells |
| 1:01.3 | imminent U.S. intervention more clearly than a visit to the capital Havana by the director of the CIA. |
| 1:08.0 | John Radcliffe apparently had detailed discussions with the government there, |
| 1:11.8 | aimed at easing economic misery caused by an oil blockade that America imposed, |
| 1:17.2 | meaning Cuba has regular power blackouts and people's living standards have taken a massive hit. |
| 1:22.7 | While this visit was taking place, the US media reported that the Justice Department in Washington was |
| 1:28.5 | planning to indict Raul Castro, the 94-year-old former president and brother of the revolutionary |
| 1:34.8 | leader Fidel Castro. This is what President Trump said when asked about the reports on board |
| 1:40.5 | Air Force One as he was flying back from Beijing. I don't want to comment on that. I'll let DOJ comment on it. |
| 1:47.1 | But they need help, as you know. |
| 1:49.9 | And you talk about a declining country. |
| 1:52.7 | They are really a nation or a country in decline. |
| 1:55.9 | So we're going to see, we have a lot to talk about on Cuba, but not maybe for today. |
| 1:59.7 | The BBC's Cuba correspondent is Will Grant, who happens to be in London at the moment. |
| 2:05.1 | I asked him first about the CIA director's visit. Was it a surprise? |
... |
Transcript will be available on the free plan in 8 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.