Cuban President Taunts Trump Admin Amid Reports Of Plans To Put Island Under Its Tutelage: 'Will Crash'

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel taunted the Trump administration amid reports of plans to put the island under its tutelage.

In a social media publication, Diaz-Canel claimed that the U.S. "publicly threatens Cuba, almost every day, to forcefully topple its constitutional order."

"They announce plans to take over the country, its resources, properties and even the economy, which they seek to suffocate to force us to surrender. It is the only way the fierce economic war being waged as a form of collective punishment on all the people. Faced with a worst-case scenario, Cuba faces a certainty: any foreign aggressor will crash against an impregnable resistance," he added.

The message comes amid reports that the Trump administration is seeking the removal of Diaz-Canel as part of its push for reforms in the island.

The New York Times detailed that the administration is not pushing for action against members of the Castro family, suggesting a move to achieve its goals without regime change in a similar way it did in Venezuela earlier this year.

Some Trump officials told the outlet that removing Diaz-Canel could allow structural changes in the country that he is reluctant to allow given his hardline views. They signaled to Cuban negotiators that the president must go but are leaving next steps to Havana.

Elsewhere, the outlet noted that U.S. officials also want to removal of other older officials committed with the ideas of Fidel Castro, as well as the release of political prisoners.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, however, rejected the notion, calling the story fake. "The reason so many in US media keep putting out fake stories like this one is because they continue to rely on charlatans & liars claiming to be in the know as their sources," he said in a social media publication.

Cuba continues going through an economic collapse marked by nation-wide blackouts in the meantime. Havana announced changes to its economic structure to avoid complete collapse, and is now set to allow nationals living abroad to invest in the private sector and own businesses in their homeland. It has also acknowledged holding talks with the U.S.

Cuba's deputy prime minister and minister of foreign trade and investment, Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, told NBC News that "Cuba is open to having a fluid commercial relationship with U.S. companies as well with Cubans residing in the United States and their descendants." However, he also largely criticized the country, blaming its policies for much of the island's economic malaise.