Senior Pentagon officials have recently reviewed a range of military options involving Cuba, according to a new CBS News report, though administration officials stress that President Donald Trump has not made any decision to authorize military action.
The report comes as the Trump administration is balancing multiple global security challenges, including renewed fighting with Iran, which has drawn significant U.S. military resources into the Middle East.
According to CBS News, military planners have examined several potential contingencies, including an Army-led air assault that could involve thousands of troops from the 101st Airborne Division. Officials familiar with the planning emphasized that the discussions are part of routine contingency planning and should not be interpreted as evidence that an operation has been approved.
The Pentagon declined to discuss the reported planning.
“We do not comment on hypothetical military operations,” acting Pentagon press secretary Joel Valdez told CBS News.
The latest reporting builds on developments that have unfolded over the past several months.
In May, CBS News reported that the U.S. intelligence community had begun assessing how Cuba might respond if President Trump ever ordered military action, while defense officials simultaneously started developing options that could be presented to the president. Officials said those assessments examined not only Cuba’s immediate response but also broader regional consequences.
Around the same time, Axios reported that U.S. Southern Command conducted a multiagency “tabletop” exercise designed to prepare for a range of scenarios if instability on the island were to worsen.
According to Axios, officials participating in the exercise stressed that “everything is on the table,” while also emphasizing that “no invasion is planned or imminent.” The exercise reportedly focused on possible humanitarian crises, internal unrest and other contingencies should Cuba’s communist government begin to unravel.
The Trump administration has steadily increased pressure on Havana throughout the year.
Since returning to office, President Trump has restored Cuba’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, expanded sanctions targeting military-controlled businesses, tightened travel and financial restrictions, and approved additional sanctions against senior Cuban officials. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly argued that economic pressure is intended to encourage political change rather than preserve the current regime.
The administration has also cited growing security concerns tied to Cuba’s relationships with geopolitical rivals.
Earlier this year, Axios reported that U.S. intelligence had concluded Cuba acquired hundreds of military drones and that Cuban officials had discussed potential contingency plans involving U.S. military facilities such as Guantanamo Bay if conflict erupted. U.S. officials stressed they did not believe an attack was imminent but viewed the intelligence as an emerging security concern.
CBS News also reported Wednesday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has publicly warned Cuba against obtaining weapons capable of threatening Guantanamo Bay or the U.S. homeland, while expressing hope that relations with a future Cuban government could eventually improve.
For now, administration officials continue to characterize the planning as contingency preparation rather than an indication that military action is imminent, leaving President Trump with a range of options should conditions in Cuba deteriorate further.
