Rubio Holds Secret Talks With Raul Castro’s Grandson Over Cuba’s Future

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has held clandestine discussions with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, known as Raulito, about options for Cuba’s political future, multiple reports citing Axios say. The conversations are described as bypassing official Havana channels and involve a 41-year-old family member tied to the Castro inner circle, sources told Axios and outlets that republished the reporting.

A senior Trump administration official, speaking on condition of anonymity to Axios, framed U.S. policy bluntly: “our position, the U.S. government’s position, is the regime has to go. But what exactly that looks like is up to (President Donald Trump) and he has yet to decide. Rubio is still in talks with the grandson.” The same official cautioned that these contacts are “discussions” rather than formal negotiations, saying, “I wouldn't call these 'negotiations' as much as 'discussions' about the future.”

Reporting that names Raulito gives specific background for why U.S. interlocutors would treat him as consequential. Intellinews and Axios identify him as Raúl Castro’s grandson, note Raúl Castro’s age as 94, and say Raulito once worked in his grandfather’s security detail and retains ties to GAESA, the military-run conglomerate that controls large swaths of the Cuban economy. Sources describe him as part of a younger, business-minded cohort focused on economic survival rather than revolutionary ideology, and his nickname “El Cangrejo” stems from a deformed finger, according to the reporting.

The talks come as U.S. officials and President Donald Trump publicly escalate pressure on Havana amid a string of institutional failures on the island. Intellinews and Axios report a failing power grid, hospitals limiting surgeries, shortages of food and fuel, tourism declines, and uncollected garbage in Havana. President Trump, quoted as speaking from Air Force One on February 16, said, “Cuba is right now a failed nation, and they don't even have jet fuel to get for airplanes to take off. We're talking to Cuba right now ... and they should absolutely make a deal.”

The reporting has drawn critics in South Florida. Rep. Carlos Gimenez, a Republican from Miami, told Local10 that “Raulito appears to be Raul’s favorite grandson so in essence it’s kind of a quasi official line of communication with the people that are really running Cuba which is still the Castro regime.” Gimenez added, “I’m not real comfortable with him talking to him but I understand why he’s doing, all we want is this regime to go, all the Cuban people want is freedom.”

Coverage notes vary on some factual points. Several outlets describe Rubio as U.S. Secretary of State and as the first US-born Cuban to hold that post, while a few lines elsewhere identified him as Senator Marco Rubio. Most detailed accounts identify Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro as Raúl Castro’s grandson, though a Local10 headline used Fidel Castro in error. Fox News reported it had reached out to the State Department and said the White House referred inquiries to press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who declared that “Havana needs to make serious changes.”