Has the US set the stage for military intervention in Cuba?
The Global Story
BBC
3.8 • 666 Ratings
🗓️ 22 May 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
US Secretary of State Marco Rubia has said Cuba poses a "national security threat" to the US and the likelihood of a peaceful agreement is "not high". His comments come days after the US announced criminal charges against Cuba’s former president Raul Castro, the brother of Fidel Castro.
The charges relate to his alleged role in the shooting down of two planes in 1996, which killed four people, including three Americans. The Cuban government say the move is “a political manoeuvre, devoid of any legal foundation.”
The indictment has drawn comparisons to the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, and whether the US has set the stage for military intervention.
Asma speaks to Cecilia Barria, a journalist based in Miami for BBC Mundo, and Will Grant, the BBC’s Mexico, Central America and Cuba correspondent, about the story behind the charges — and why three decades on, the indictment is only happening now.
Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Aron Keller Executive producer: James Shield Mix: Travis Evans Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Raul Castro attend the International Labor Day commemoration in Havana, Cuba, 01 May 2026. Ernesto Mastrascusa/EPA/Shutterstock
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts. |
| 0:05.0 | In the winter of 1996, three small airplanes took off from Florida, en route to Cuba, but they never made it. |
| 0:14.0 | Good evening. The Clinton administration is calling for an emergency session of the United Nations Security Council after two civilian |
| 0:21.5 | aircraft were shot down by Cuba yesterday. |
| 0:23.8 | Two of the planes were shot down by Cuban fighter jets. |
| 0:29.2 | The third was able to escape. |
| 0:31.8 | They were operated by a group known as Brothers to the Rescue. |
| 0:35.2 | It was founded by Cuban exiles. |
| 0:37.3 | The group said that they were |
| 0:38.4 | providing humanitarian assistance in international waters. The Cuban government said the group |
| 0:43.5 | repeatedly violated Cuba's airspace. In the end, four people were killed, including three |
| 0:50.4 | U.S. citizens. A pole of smoke shot on home video by horrified passengers on a cruise ship. |
| 0:56.6 | The only visual evidence of what happened. |
| 0:59.2 | The incident immediately sparked outrage |
| 1:01.7 | in the United States against the Cuban government. |
| 1:07.3 | Down with Castro, the cry from Cuban Americans. |
| 1:12.6 | United States have to do something about this. |
| 1:14.6 | If they wouldn't want to do something, they should let us do something. |
| 1:18.6 | Us, the Cuban here in Miami will do something. |
| 1:20.6 | And the repercussions were not just felt by the Cuban diaspora in Miami. |
| 1:25.6 | The shooting caused a political fallout here in Washington. |
| 1:29.3 | In their memory, I will continue to do everything I can to help the tide of democracy that has swept our entire hemisphere. |
... |
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