Why the U.S. Just Indicted Cuba’s Former President

The Daily

05/21/26

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29m

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The U.S. charged Raúl Castro, Cuba’s former leader and Communist general, with murder on Wednesday. It was the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s campaign to force political change on the island.

The New York Times reporters Frances Robles and Julian Barnes break down what is behind the charges against Mr. Castro and what the American government really wants from Cuba.

Guest:

Frances Robles, an international correspondent covering Latin America and the Caribbean for The New York Times.
Julian E. Barnes, a reporter covering the U.S. intelligence agencies and international security matters for The New York Times.

Background reading:

The Justice Department charged the former Cuban president in fatal downing of planes.
Here’s what happened on the day Cuba shot down two civilian planes.

Photo: Norlys Perez/Reuters

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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Guest: Andrew Duehren, who writes about tax policy for The New York Times from Washington.

Background reading:

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Photo: Eric Lee for The New York Times

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

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Guest: Nate Cohn, the chief political analyst for The New York Times. I cover American politics, with a focus on elections, public opinion, demographics and polling.

Background reading: