Cuba’s president said the soldiers fell defending the “sovereignty of our sister countries” amid rising tensions with the United States.
Published January 15, 2026
Cuba has paid tribute to the 32 soldiers killed in the U.S. attack on Venezuela earlier this month that led to the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro.
The remains of the soldier, who was a member of the Cuban national army and intelligence services, arrived at Havana’s international airport early Thursday in a coffin draped with the Cuban flag.
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President Miguel Díaz-Canel and 94-year-old former Cuban leader Raul Castro attended to receive the remains in full military uniform.
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Díaz-Canel praised the soldiers for “heroically falling in defense of the sovereignty of our sister countries.”
At Thursday’s event, Interior Minister Lázaro Alberto Álvarez also expressed his gratitude to the soldiers who “fought to the last bullet” during the Jan. 3 attack by U.S. forces on Venezuela’s capital, Caracas.
“We do not accept them with resignation. We accept them with deep pride,” Alvarez said, adding that the United States “can never buy the dignity of the Cuban people.”
Thousands of people could then be seen paying their respects, waving flags and saluting as a motorcade took the body to the Ministry of the Armed Forces along Havana’s main thoroughfare.
Residents of the capital also lined up throughout the day to pay their respects to the ministry.
US President Donald Trump has rejected international criticism that the raid to capture President Maduro violated international law, stressing last week that he would act only based on his “own morals”.
This has heightened tensions around the world, particularly in Latin America, where there is a long history of U.S. military intervention.
Tensions between the United States and Cuba escalated this week after President Trump told the country he was cutting off Venezuelan oil and money flowing into Cuba and warned Havana to strike a deal before it was “too late.”
Díaz-Canel reacted defiantly to Trump’s comments, saying Cuba would defend its homeland “to the drop of blood.”
“We are always ready to maintain serious and responsible dialogue with the various administrations of the United States, including the current administration, based on the principles of sovereign equality, mutual respect, and international law,” the Cuban president said.
He added that the relationship between the United States and Cuba should be based on international law and not on “hostility, intimidation, or economic coercion.”
Meanwhile, a rally is planned for Friday in front of the U.S. Embassy in Havana to protest the Trump administration’s operations in Venezuela.
President Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were abducted by the US military and are being held in the US on drug-related charges, which he denies.
