Blinken: ‘We Haven’t Seen’ Cuban Regime Improve Due to Sanctions, They Usually ‘Double Down’

On Friday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Cuban regime has not improved its behavior in response to recent U.S. sanctions, and Cuba’s regime “tends to double down in these situations.”

Co-host Mika Brzezinski asked, “[I]s the regime responding, showing any signs of improvement of responding to what the United States is requiring for the sanctions to either be pulled back or for more sanctions not to come their way?”

Blinken responded, “No. We haven’t seen that kind of response. The regime tends to double down in these situations. But again, this is not about us. This is about the Cuban people. And I think one of the big mistakes the regime makes is to try to point the finger at the United States saying we’re responsible for these protests. We’re not. These are the Cuban people. They are speaking up. They are standing — they’re speaking out. They’re standing up. And a regime that doesn’t understand that and that lacks the confidence to allow the voices of its own people to be heard I think is making a very, very big mistake.”

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