ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada – Cuba on Wednesday condemned “in the strongest terms”  what it described as the despicable accusation by the United States Department of Justice against former president Raul Castro.

NASSAU, Bahamas – Prime Minister Philip Davis guided his ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) to a record second consecutive term in office after it swept Tuesday’s general election he had called ahead of the constitutional deadline.

HAGUE – Guyana has told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that its case over the ownership of the Essequibo region, “has an existential quality” for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country and that it “respectfully submits that this case is as straightforward as it is consequential”.

ROSEAU, Dominica – Cuba’s Ambassador to Dominica, Miguel Manuel Fraga Gonzalez, has brushed aside a United States offer of US$100 million humanitarian aid package, reiterating Havana’s decades’ old call for Washington to lift the trade and economic embargo on the Caribbean island.

WASHINGTON, DC – The Trump administration  is seeking to revoke the citizenship of convicted Cuban spy Victor Manuel Rocha.

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Prime Minister Gaston Browne’s gamble of calling a general election nearly two years ahead of the constitutional deadline, paid off on Thursday when he guided his ruling Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) to a commanding victory.

UNITED NATIONS – Senior United Nations officials warned on Friday that blackouts and shortages are disrupting healthcare in Cuba.

WASHINGTON, DC – The Trump administration in the United States says it is taking “decisive action” to protect US national security by imposing sanctions on Cuba’s military and elites 

GEORGETOWN, Guyana – The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Tuesday said that it has taken note of recent official engagements within the Community during which material asserting Venezuela’s claim to Guyana’s Essequibo region had been on public display.

WASHINGTON, DC – The Trump administration says it is ready to provide US$100 million in direct assistance to the Cuban people, if the Cuban regime will permit it.

HAGUE – Guyana has told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that neither Spain nor Venezuela ever administered the Essequibo region being claimed by the South American country.

NEW YORK, New York – The United States has agreed to permit the Venezuelan government to finance the legal defense of ousted President Nicolás Maduro, resolving a weeks-long dispute that had threatened to derail one of the most high-profile international criminal cases in recent years.

In a joint letter submitted late Friday to a federal judge in New York, prosecutors and defense attorneys confirmed that the US Treasury Department amended a sanctions license to allow payments to lawyers representing Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Both have pleaded not guilty to charges that include drug trafficking and weapons offenses.

Under the revised arrangement, defense attorneys may receive funds from the Venezuelan government, provided the payments come from money available after March 5, 2026, and comply with specific conditions outlined by US authorities.

The dispute centered on US sanctions imposed on both Maduro and Venezuela, which require special authorization from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) for any financial transactions. Maduro’s attorney, Barry Pollack, had argued that the government initially approved — then abruptly revoked — such authorization, undermining his client’s constitutional right to legal representation.

Prosecutors maintained that the reversal was due to an “administrative error” and insisted that the defendants could use personal funds. However, the defense countered that Maduro and his wife lacked access to such resources, intensifying the legal impasse.

The disagreement prompted defense lawyers to seek dismissal of the indictment, claiming that US actions were obstructing their ability to mount an effective defense against allegations tied to a narco-terrorism conspiracy. During a court hearing last month, prosecutors argued that sanctions serve broader foreign policy goals and are justified in restricting access to funds.

Presiding Judge Alvin Hellerstein expressed skepticism about that position, noting that Maduro and Flores are already in federal custody and do not pose an ongoing threat. Following the Treasury’s decision to amend the license, defense attorneys have since withdrawn their legal challenge.

Maduro and his wife remain detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn as the case proceeds. Their legal team is expected to continue contesting the charges, including potential arguments that Maduro is immune from prosecution for actions taken while he was Venezuela’s president.

Maduro, first elected in 2013, has not been recognized as Venezuela’s legitimate leader by the United States and several other countries since 2019. In March, the US government formally recognized former vice president Delcy Rodríguez as the country’s leader.