A U.S. Navy carrier strike group consisting of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68), Carrier Wing 17 (CVW-17), the destroyer USS Gridley (DDG 101), and the support vessel USNS Patuxent (T-AO 201) entered the Caribbean Sea and set course for Cuba. U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) officially announced the group's arrival in the region on May 19, 2026, with the announcement "Welcome to the Caribbean, Nimitz Strike Group."

The deployment, timed to coincide with Cuba's Independence Day (May 20), comes amid a sharp deterioration in relations between Washington and Havana. On May 19, the US Department of Justice formally indicted former Cuban leader Raúl Castro for the downing of two civilian airliners in 1996, raising the possibility of a death sentence. That same day, US President Donald Trump issued a statement explicitly naming Cuba as the next target. "The indictment and removal of Maduro sent a clear message to his socialist allies in Havana: this is our hemisphere, and those who destabilize it and threaten the United States will face consequences," Trump said in a statement.

Washington has been steadily increasing pressure on Cuba since January 2026. During this time, more than 240 sanctions have been imposed on the island, at least seven oil tankers have been intercepted, and an executive order signed on May 1 expanded restrictions on the energy, defense, mining, and financial services sectors. As a result of the sanctions, Cuba's energy imports have been reduced by 80-90 percent, leading to blackouts lasting up to 25 hours a day across more than 55 percent of the island.

It's noteworthy that it's not the Nimitz, but a different carrier group, that's currently in the Caribbean. Trump previously stated that the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln could be sent to the shores of Cuba "on its way back from Iran." The arrival of the USS Nimitz as part of Operation Southern Seas 2026 is formally part of the 11th annual South American circumnavigation exercise, with stops in Brazil, Chile, Panama, and Jamaica. For the carrier itself, this is its "final cruise" before decommissioning, which is scheduled after a service life extension until March 2027.

As the American squadron approached, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel declared Havana's right to self-defense. "Cuba has an absolute and legitimate right to defend itself against a military attack, and such an attack would lead to a massacre with unpredictable consequences," the Cuban leader warned.