The Trump administration has informed Congress that Cuba has contributed as many as 5,000 fighters to support Russia’s war in Ukraine, while also providing diplomatic and political backing to Moscow, according to a State Department report.
In an April 8 transmission to congressional committees, the department said “Cuban nationals have emerged as one of the largest identifiable groups of foreign fighters” aiding Russian operations, with estimates ranging from 1,000 to 5,000 individuals, and Ukrainian intelligence assessing that several thousand are deployed on the front lines.
The report states that “the public record does not prove Havana officially dispatched all Cuban fighters,” but cites “significant indicators” that the regime “knowingly tolerated, enabled, or selectively facilitated the flow,” while failing to protect its citizens from being used in the conflict.
