Cuba is on alert for potential U.S. military action, despite recent indications from the Trump administration that an invasion is not on the agenda, according to Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío. He made the comments during an appearance on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday.

“Our military forces are consistently prepared, and they are currently focusing on the potential threat of military aggression,” Fernández de Cossío stated in the televised interview. “Given the global climate, it would be naive for us not to take these precautions.”

While emphasizing Cuba’s readiness, he expressed hope that conflict could be avoided. “We sincerely hope that such an event does not transpire. There is no apparent reason or justification for the United States to initiate military action against Cuba, a neighboring country,” he continued.

Firmly addressing the notion of regime change, Fernández de Cossío asserted that Cuba is resolutely opposed to any attempts by President Donald Trump’s administration to instigate such efforts. (Photo by Adalberto Roque/AFP via Getty Images)

Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio said Cuba “absolutely” will stand firm against regime change at the hands of President Donald Trump. (Adaberto Roque/AFP via Getty Images)

The Cuban official’s remarks come just days after President Donald Trump said it would be “a big honor” to be the president that has the “honor of taking Cuba.”

“Taking Cuba in some form, yeah, taking Cuba – I mean, whether I free it, take it: I think I can do anything I want with it, you want to know the truth,” Trump said, despite the fact Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed diplomacy with the failing regime over any talk of an invasion as Trump’s statement might suggest.

“They’re in a lot of trouble, and the people in charge, they don’t know how to fix it,” Rubio said this week. “So they have to get new people in charge.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump have both expressed repeated hope that Cuba would be freed from its long-standing dictatorship. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

But Fernández de Cossío said Cuba is “absolutely” opposed to regime change, signaling defiance of Trump and Rubio’s public statements and setting the stage for potential military action down the road.

“Our country has historically been ready to mobilize, as a nation as a whole, for military aggression,” he told NBC’s Kristen Welker. “We truly always see it as something far from us. We don’t believe it is something that is probable. But we would be naive if we do not prepare. That’s what I can tell you.”

Asked whether Cuba was bracing for the United States “to take it in some form,” Fernández de Cossío answered: “Truly, we don’t know what they’re talking about.”

“But I can tell you this: Cuba is a sovereign country and has the right to be a sovereign country and has the right to self-determination,” he added. “Cuba would not accept to become a vassal state or a dependent state from any other country or any other superpower.”

Fernández de Cossío said Cuba was prepared to negotiate with Rubio despite the secretary of state’s long-standing criticism of the Cuban government.

“We are ready to negotiate with the person that the U.S. government, as a sovereign nation, designates as their spokesperson, as their lead negotiator, and we’re ready to negotiate with whoever is designated by the U.S. government,” he said. “They’re a sovereign nation. We don’t interfere with that.”

Throughout the interview, the Cuban diplomat cast Havana’s position as defensive, saying Cuba “has no quarrel with the United States” and wants “a respectful relationship,” while blaming the island’s worsening energy and economic crisis on U.S. pressure, including efforts to choke off fuel supplies. Recent reporting has documented Cuba’s deepening blackout crisis and the Trump administration’s increased efforts to isolate the government economically.

“What does ‘on its own’ mean when it’s being forced by the United States?” Fernández de Cossío said when asked about Trump’s claim that Cuba could collapse on its own. “It’s a very bizarre statement.”

His closing message to Trump was conciliatory, even as he warned that Cuba was preparing for the worst.

“Cuba has no quarrel with the United States,” Fernández de Cossío said. “We do have the need and the right to protect ourself. 

“But we are willing to sit down, we’re open for business, and we’re all being open to having a respectful relationship that I’m sure the majority of Americans would support, and I’m sure the president of the United States would support, if we could sit down and talk meaningfully about it.”

After three decades of Vanity Fair’s legendary parties, known for their indulgence and dazzling opulence, the magazine’s new editor decided it was time for a change.

While the publication will continue to host its iconic post-Oscars celebration, inviting Hollywood’s elite to either toast victories or nurse losses, the editor has set a new rule: no journalists allowed.

According to insiders, this decision aims to make the event more exclusive, providing the true A-listers with a space to unwind without the scrutiny of watchful reporters. Consequently, media outlets like The New York Times, Associated Press, and The Hollywood Reporter were informed they wouldn’t be on the guest list this year.

This raises the question: why was CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in attendance? Moreover, what qualifies her for such a coveted spot?

Hailing from Alabama, the 33-year-old Collins made history in 2021 as CNN’s youngest chief White House correspondent, earning a reputation as a determined and trustworthy journalist.

‘When you go on CNN and give a report from the White House, people from all walks of life are listening to you to see what’s going on, and they’re counting on you to know what you’re talking about and to present it fairly,’ she told Forbes in February of that year. ‘I think that the best way to earn the respect of your colleagues – not just within your own team but within the entire White House press corps – is to be well-read on what’s going on and to have good reporting.’

But five years on, as she posed at the Vanity Fair party, her CNN colleagues were asking whether she really was still focused on her reporting. Perhaps, some snarked, Hollywood had turned her head.

‘When you become more well known as a red carpet influencer than a journalist, there’s a problem,’ one seasoned network executive told the Daily Mail, adding that she was becoming seen as ‘out of touch’ and chasing ‘red-carpet notoriety.’

‘When you become more well known as a red carpet influencer than a journalist, there’s a problem,’ one seasoned network executive told the Daily Mail. (Pictured: Collins posing for a photo at the Vanity Fair Oscars Party) 

Pictured: Collins and photographer Emilio Madrid at the 2026 Grammy Awards last month. An industry source suggested to the Daily Mail that Collins’ success has gone to her head

The source noted that Matthew Belloni, author of news website Puck’s influential media gossip column, had decreed Collins the new holder of ‘the Don Lemon crown of CNN-er who most enjoys flying to LA for parties.’

It was not, the source said, a compliment.

Lemon was ousted from CNN in April 2023 amid widespread discontent within the network at his seeming arrogance and starry ways.

‘His tenure at the network was plagued by ill-informed, opinion-laden commentary masquerading as journalism with spouts of drunken debauchery on full display during New Year’s Eve coverage,’ the source said of Lemon.

‘If I were Collins, I’d see this as a wakeup call and focus more on my day job and less on gallivanting around town.’

The signs, perhaps, have been there for a while.

In June 2025, CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros Discovery, announced that it was splitting into two separate companies: one focused on the HBO Max streaming service and Warner Bros studio, and the other comprised of CNN and other television networks.

The news was greeted with trepidation among staff at CNN, after a bruising start to the year: six percent of the workforce, around 200 people, were laid off in January 2025, Axios reported.

Yet at that precise moment, it emerged that Collins had splashed out on a Nantucket beach house, which Page Six reported was ‘very expensive.’ The average home price on the sought-after Massachusetts island was roughly $4.5 million as of May 2025, according to Realtor.com.

‘She just bought some bougie place and CNN people are grossed out that she paid so much,’ one disgruntled colleague told Page Six.

Don Lemon – Collins’ former, fired, costar – and actress Keke Palmer at this year’s NAACP Image Awards at Pasadena Civic Auditorium on February 28

‘If I were Collins, I’d see this as a wakeup call and focus more on my day job and less on galivanting around town,’ the source said

The source said Collins will certainly be party hopping again next month amid the White House Correspondents’ Dinner weekend

Collins, instead of keeping a low profile, boasted about her new holiday home, describing herself in August 2025 as ‘The Influencer Driving Nantucket Crazy This Summer.’

The following month, Collins was in London, attending a political society wedding at the Palace of Westminster.

Striking in a large yellow hat and polka dot dress, Collins posed with the former UK ambassador to Washington, Dame Karen Pierce, and with the bride, Emily Benn – granddaughter of British political giant Tony Benn. It’s not clear how Collins knew Benn, a Labour party councillor, although Benn did spend time working at a bank in New York and at Harvard.

In the new year, Collins was again mingling with famous faces – this time at the Grammy Awards, held in Los Angeles.

And once again, CNN staffers were left wondering what she was doing there.

‘Seems Collins cares more about the perks of journalism,’ the source said – noting that she will certainly be party hopping again next month amid the White House Correspondents’ Dinner weekend.

Few could begrudge her that – after all, she is a near daily presence in the White House briefing room.

But, the source said, Collins’ penchant for parties was being noticed.

‘The all-about-me journalism is clearly in the DNA at CNN – and Collins is no exception,’ the source said.

‘When in doubt – go out. CNN is clearly in a tailspin so why not enjoy the notoriety while you can.’

Neither CNN nor Collins’ spokesperson at CNN responded to requests for comment.

In a tragic incident that shook Northern California, an elderly driver responsible for the deaths of a family of four has been handed a sentence of probation, two years after the fatal crash. The courtroom in San Francisco was filled with a somber atmosphere as 80-year-old Mary Fong Lau faced her sentencing on Friday.

Lau, who pleaded no contest to the charges, was sentenced to six days in jail, which she has already served, alongside two years of probation and a requirement to complete 200 hours of community service. The decision was announced by the judge who took into consideration Lau’s advanced age and her previously clean record prior to the tragic event that occurred in San Francisco’s West Portal neighborhood.

The sentencing has stirred emotions, with District Attorney Brooke Jenkins expressing her dissatisfaction, particularly over the fact that Lau was not required to formally enter a guilty plea. Jenkins also voiced concerns about the possibility of Lau eventually being allowed to drive again, a prospect that raises questions about road safety and accountability.

The jail sentence is the number of days she’s already served — there will be no additional time.

District Attorney Brooke Jenkins expressed frustration that Lau was not required to enter a plea, and that she could one day drive again.

“This is not a crime that we believe was intentional conduct, and there are limitations of what she is able to do physically- but again, simply because you are elderly does not mean that there shouldn’t be sufficient accountability. That is what my office’s position remains to be. There has to be a form of accountability that actually gives this family a sense of justice that sends a message to other drivers on the road in San Francisco, said District Attorney Brooke Jenkins.

Lau’s attorney said she was remorseful.

“There are no good outcomes for such an immense tragedy. Everyone who came to court felt the pain that is present in the community and from these families and we feel it- too. Mrs. Lau feels the pain of this tragic loss. She has taken accountability by pleading no contest. Not requiring the district attorney’s office to do a preliminary hearing or to take the case to trial which would have taken years with an unknown outcome. She hopes that by entering a no contest plead it could begin a process of healing for these families,” said Seth Morris, Lau’s attorney.

Two years ago, this week the family of four was on their way to the San Francisco Zoo with their two young children when they were killed by Lau driving 70 miles an hour in the residential area of West Portal in San Francisco.

No car issues have been discovered that might have led to this crash. A witness on the scene said Lau told her she had hit the gas instead of the brakes. Aside from the criminal case, there are two civil cases against Lau where it was discovered she had transferred her assets during this process.

“She doesn’t have home detention- she doesn’t have any restriction of her freedom. She just has to ask permission to maybe travel out of state, it’s minimal in the consequences. They asked her for 200 hours of community service that rounds up to about five weeks. Five weeks of undefined community service which could mean whatever. We don’t know what for- taking four lives. That is what we have and that is just not fair. That is not justice and doesn’t give anything to the family to make them feel that they were heard,” said Jim Quadra, victims family attorney in the civil case against Lau.

As part of the sentence, Lau will not be allowed to drive for three years but is allowed to renew her license after that period.

Her attorney said she did not intend to drive again.

This was also the first time she looked at the family and said she was sorry.