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MIAMI — Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified in court that he had no knowledge that former Florida congressman David Rivera was lobbying on behalf of Venezuela’s government — as prosecutors later alleged — when he met with his longtime friend to discuss U.S. policy toward the South American country several times at the start of the first Trump administration.

“I would’ve been shocked” had I known, Rubio said in almost three hours of testimony Tuesday at Rivera’s federal trial in Miami.

Rivera and an associate were charged in 2022 with money laundering and failing to register as a foreign agent after being awarded a $50-million lobbying contract by Nicolás Maduro’s government.

Prosecutors allege that the goal of the lobbying effort was to persuade the White House to normalize relations with Venezuela, while Rivera’s attorneys argue that the three-month contract, which ended before Rivera met with Rubio, was focused exclusively on luring Exxon Mobil back to Venezuela — commercial work that is generally exempt from the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

As part of his work, Rivera and his co-defendant are accused of trying to arrange meetings for then-Foreign Minister Delcy Rodríguez — now Venezuela’s acting president — in Dallas, New York, Washington and Caracas, Venezuela, with White House officials, members of Congress and the chief executive of Exxon.

Rubio testifies, an unusual move

In sometimes deeply personal testimony Tuesday, Rubio discussed at length friendships that date back to the start of his political career as an aide to Bob Dole’s 1996 presidential campaign and a West Miami council member.

Testifying in a packed courtroom with heightened security, Rubio said he and Rivera became “very close” when they overlapped as members of the Florida Legislature. The two Cuban American Republicans co-owned a house in Tallahassee, celebrated family events together and ardently opposed Venezuela’s socialist government when both went to Washington at the same time — Rubio elected to the Senate, Rivera to the House.

So when Rivera texted Rubio in July 2017 that he needed to see him urgently to discuss Venezuela, they agreed to meet the next day, a Sunday, at a friend’s home in Washington where the then-senator was staying with his family, Rubio said.

At the meeting, Rivera informed Rubio that he was working with Raul Gorrín, a media magnate in Venezuela, on what he described as a plan for Maduro to step aside.

“I was skeptical,” said Rubio, adding that the Maduro government was full of “double dealers” constantly pitching unrealistic plans to unseat Maduro. “But if there was a 1% chance it was real, and I had a role to play alerting the White House, I was open to doing that.”

Rubio said he had no knowledge Rivera was himself working for Maduro, as prosecutors would later allege. Rubio said he doubted Gorrín would betray Maduro even when the former congressman opened his laptop and showed millions of dollars in a Chase bank account that he was told were payments from the businessman to Venezuela’s opposition.

“It was an impressive amount,” Rubio said. “He didn’t tell me whose account it was. He said it was to support the opposition.”

Two days later, borrowing talking points provided by Rivera, Rubio wrote and delivered a speech on the Senate floor signaling the U.S. would not retaliate against Venezuelan insiders who worked to push Maduro from power.

“He provided me with insight into some of the key phrases that regime insiders would’ve wanted to hear to know this was serious,” Rubio testified. “No vengeance, no retribution.”

Rubio also spoke to Trump, alerting the president in his first term that there may be something “brewing” with Venezuela.

‘A total waste of my time’

But the peacemaking effort collapsed almost immediately. At a second meeting at a Washington hotel, Gorrín failed to produce a promised letter from Maduro to Trump that he wanted Rubio to hand-deliver to the president.

“It was a total waste of my time,” Rubio testified.

Shortly afterward, Trump imposed heavy sanctions on Maduro and members of his inner circle for their decision to go forward with what Rubio called a “fake election” to empower a constituent assembly that undercut the opposition-controlled legislature.

By that time, the senator hewed closely to the Trump administration’s hard line. He taped a rare 10-minute address to the Venezuelan people in July 2017, a day after the divisive election, that was broadcast exclusively on Gorrín’s Globovision network.

“For Nicolás Maduro, who I am sure is watching, the current path you are on will not end well for you,” Rubio said in the televised address.

On the stand, Rubio said that had he known Rivera was working with Gorrín on behalf of Maduro, he never would have agreed to deliver the address on the network.

But Rivera said Rubio’s testimony backed his defense that as a lifelong opponent of communism he never worked to strengthen Maduro’s grip on power.

“Marco Rubio made it abundantly clear today that everything we worked on together in 2017 was meant to remove Maduro from power in Venezuela,” he said in a statement.

Throughout his testimony Rubio, a lawyer, spoke calmly and in command of granular details of U.S. policy toward Venezuela over the past decade, even as he struggled to recall the specifics of his text exchanges with Rivera on Venezuela matters.

His testimony was highly unusual. Not since Labor Secretary Raymond Donovan testified at a Mafia trial in 1983 has a sitting member of the president’s Cabinet taken the stand in a criminal trial.

As if to underscore the uniqueness of his appearance in federal court, Rivera’s attorney, Ed Shohat, asked Rubio to sign a copy of his 2012 autobiography, “An American Son,” at the conclusion of his testimony.

Rivera and his co-defendant, political consultant Esther Nuhfer, are among a small number of friends and family Rubio thanks in the acknowledgment section of his memoir.

Goodman writes for the Associated Press.

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda have agreed on specific measures to expedite the implementation of the Washington peace accords. This agreement was reached during meetings held in Washington on March 17 and 18. 

A joint declaration released by both countries and the United States on March 18 outlines these developments. The two parties have outlined a series of coordinated actions aimed at “defusing the tensions” and “pushing forward the situation on the ground”. 

The measures include a mutual agreement to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each country, as well as the disengagement of Rwandan forces and the lifting of defensive measures in certain zones of eastern DRC. The authorities in Kinshasa are making some reinforced yet limited attempts to neutralise the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) rebels.

The protection of civilians was reaffirmed as a priority. Both DRC and Rwanda reiterated their commitment to achieving lasting peace in the Great Lakes Region within the context of the Washington Accords.

This announcement comes amid persistent tensions in the eastern DRC. The Kinshasa authorities on Monday praised the sanctions imposed by the United States on the Rwandan Defence Forces (RDF) and several members of their officers accused of “direct involvement” on the side of the M23 rebels.

According to the Congolese government, these American measures constitute “a clear signal” in favour of the respect of the DRC’s sovereignty and the effective implementation of engagements taken within the context of the Washington Accords. It also insisted on the necessity for “coherence between diplomatic engagements and the operational realities on the ground”.

The government expressed its recognition of the United States’ role in the peace efforts and called for pursuing initiatives to ensure the respect of commitments and the re-establishment of a durable peace in the region.

TOKYO — Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is traveling Wednesday to the United States for what she expects to be a “very difficult” meeting with President Trump after he called on Japan and other allies to send warships to secure the Strait of Hormuz.

The three-day visit to Washington was originally expected to focus on trade and strengthening the U.S.-Japanese alliance as China’s influence grows in Asia. It is now expected to be overshadowed by the war the United States and Israel launched against Iran on Feb. 28.

”I think the U.S. visit will be a very difficult one, but I will do everything to maximize our national interest and to protect the daily lives of the people when the situation changes daily,” Takaichi told parliament on Wednesday, hours before her departure.

Takaichi held her first meeting with Trump in October in Tokyo, days after becoming Japan’s first female prime minister. A hard-line conservative, Takaichi is a protege of former leader Shinzo Abe, who developed a close friendship with Trump.

Her initial plan was to focus largely on China and strengthen the Japan-U.S. alliance ahead of Trump ‘s highly anticipated diplomatic trip to China that had been planned for months. The White House announced Tuesday that it is being delayed due to the war in the Middle East.

Takaichi will be in the hot seat figuring out what best to offer to Trump. Experts say showing commitment and progress in investment deals is key to a successful summit.

Japanese officials say the two sides will work to deepen cooperation in regional security, critical minerals, energy and dealing with China.

No plan to send warship to the Strait of Hormuz

A key U.S. ally in Asia, Japan has carefully avoided clear support for the U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran or a decision over a warship deployment. That’s mainly because of Japan’s constitutional constraints but also due to a legal question over the U.S. action and strong public opinion against it.

She told parliament that Japan hopes to see a de-escalation of the war, which has disrupted deliveries of oil and gas that Japan is highly dependent on.

“Without early de-escalation of the situation, our economy will be in trouble,” she said. “Early de-escalation is important for both the U.S. and global economy.”

Japan also hopes to secure its traditional ties with Iran, where most of Japanese oil imports come from.

Takaichi and her ministers have denied that Washington officially requested Japanese warships sent to the Strait of Hormuz. Trump on X asked a number of countries, including Japan, to volunteer. He then said he no longer needs them, complaining about a lack of enthusiasm.

That takes some pressure off Takaichi.

“We have no plans to send warships right now,” Takaichi told the parliamentary session Wednesday. A dispatch for survey and intelligence missions are possible but only after a ceasefire, she said. Some Japanese experts have commented that minesweeping would be a mission that the country could carry out when hostilities end.

“I will clearly explain what we can do and cannot do based on the Japanese law,” Takaichi said. “I’m sure (Trump) is fully aware of the Japanese law.”

China and security

Takaichi wants to discuss China’s security and economic coercion and ensure the U.S. commitment in the Indo-Pacific region, especially as some U.S. troops stationed in Japan are being shifted to the Middle East — a change seen by Japan as a potential risk for Asia as China’s clout grows.

Takaichi plans to reassure Trump of Japan’s military buildup, emphasizing the acceleration of long-range missile deployment to enhance offensive capabilities. This breaks from Japan’s postwar self-defense-only principle and reflects closer alignment with the U.S.

At the summit, Takaichi is expected to convey Japan’s interest in joining America’s “ Golden Dome “ multi-billion dollar, multi-layered missile defense system.

Japan considers China a growing security threat and has pushed a military buildup on southwestern islands near the East China Sea.

Takaichi has pledged to revise Japan’s security and defense policy by December and seeks to further bolster Japan’s military with unmanned combative weapons and long-range missiles.

Her government is to scrap a lethal arms exports ban in the coming weeks to promote Japan’s defense industry and cooperation with the United States and other friendly nations.

Oil in Alaska, rare earths in Japan

A resource-poor nation, Japan is seeking to diversify oil suppliers and is finalizing a Japanese investment for increased oil production in Alaska and stockpiles in Japan, according to media reports. A Japanese investment in small modular reactors and natural gas in the U.S. is also a possibility.

If agreed, the projects would be part of a $550 billion investment package that Japan pledged in October. In February, the two sides announced Japan’s commitment to the $36 billion first batch of projects — a natural gas plant in Ohio, a U.S. Gulf Coast crude oil export facility and a synthetic diamond manufacturing site — whose progress is also to be disccused with Trump.

Japan reportedly plans to propose a joint development of rare earths discovered in undersea soil around the remote Japanese island of Minamitorishima as part of the investment package.

Diplomatic and trade disputes have escalated further since Takaichi’s comment that any Chinese military action against Taiwan could be grounds for a Japanese military response.

Yamaguchi writes for the Associated Press.

WASHINGTON — President Trump expressed frustration Monday that U.S. allies were not enthusiastic about sending warships to protect merchant vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a sign of Washington’s growing isolation as it tries to stabilize one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes amid its war against Iran.

Trump declined to name the “numerous countries” he said had agreed to help reopen the oil route, which has come under the threat of retaliation from Iran, but was annoyed that most longtime allies were hesitant about joining his international police force. He said they should be “jumping to help us.”

“Some countries that we have helped for many, many years, we’ve protected them from horrible outside sources and they weren’t that enthusiastic — and the level of enthusiasm, it matters to me,” Trump said at the White House.

For Trump, securing allies’ help is as much a domestic economic need as it is international diplomacy. Since the hostilities against Iran began on Feb. 28, Tehran has retaliated by targeting regional oil facilities and at least 20 vessels operating in and around the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman.

The result has been “the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market,” according to the International Energy Agency, and it has led to international oil prices surging more than 30% to over $100 a barrel as the war entered its third week with no clear end in sight.

The diplomatic friction, meanwhile, reflects the limits of Trump’s influence at a moment when the global economy is absorbing one of the worst oil supply shocks in modern history, a dynamic that has prompted Trump to warn that countries refusing to help may find Washington a far less generous partner in turn.

Despite Trump‘s demands, several key allies have publicly rebuffed his calls for support.

French President Emmanuel Macron formally rejected the request, saying that France would maintain a “defensive and protective” posture focused on stability rather than escalation.

German Foreign Minister Boris Pistorius was blunter, saying, “This is not our war; we didn’t start it.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer also declined to commit, saying the U.K. “will not be drawn into the wider war.” Italy, Spain, Australia and Japan similarly declined, while South Korea and China have not publicly stated their intentions.

The rejections seems to have only sharpened Trump’s demands. At one point during an event Monday, the president turned to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and said he would share a list of nations that declined to help, suggesting Congress could have a role in any retaliatory measures against reluctant allies.

“Why are we protecting countries that don’t protect us?” Trump said.

Yet Trump also sent conflicting signals about how much allied help he actually needs. At one point he claimed the United States did not require assistance from other countries.

“We don’t need them, but it’s interesting — I am doing it, in some cases, not because we need them, but because I want to see how they react,” Trump said.

On the threat to merchant ships, Trump projected uncertainty. He said the possibility of mines was “enough to keep people” from transiting the waterway, but said that “we don’t even know” if Iran has placed any mines in the strait.

“They may have no mines,” he said. “We hit every one of their mine ships. Every one of them is gone — but it only takes one.”

Speaking aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump also sent mixed messages about the threats and the need for help. He said the United States was coordinating with roughly seven countries to deploy naval forces to “police the straits — before adding, in the same remarks, that “maybe we shouldn’t even be there at all.”

He suggested American forces should not be there because other nations depend more heavily on oil shipments through the oil route, an about-face that drew criticism from allies, who said it created confusion about Washington’s strategy in a conflict the United States had itself started.

“To keep the strait open, I have a very hard time believing that China and the other countries the president enlisted are really going to be escorting ships through the strait. That just really doesn’t add up to me,” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said in an NBC “Meet the Press” interview Sunday.

“The bottom line is, we really don’t know how long this war is going to be,” he added.

Trump, however, is keeping the pressure on allied countries, making the future of the conflict more open-ended depending on their response.

Trump insisted Monday that “numerous countries have told me they are on their way,” but said he would “rather not say” who they are.

He then said the tepid responses from some U.S. allies had reinforced his skepticism about the value of the NATO alliance, echoing comments he made over the weekend when he warned that a failure to assist would be “very bad for the future of NATO” and that the U.S. would “remember” those who did not step up.

When asked if he was confident Macron will help with the reopening of the strait, Trump told reporters: “Yeah, I mean sure. … I think he’s gonna help. I mean I’ll let you know.”

Europe has nonetheless been drawn deeper into the conflict.

The U.K. initially refused to support U.S. military operations, but softened its position after Trump mocked Starmer as “no Winston Churchill” and called Britain a “once great ally.” France also said last week that it was preparing a separate “purely defensive” naval mission to escort commercial vessels through the strait once it was safe to do so.

Moving forward, it is unclear how the European Union and other nations around the world will respond to Trump’s pressure.

“Nobody wants to go actively in this war. And of course, everybody is concerned what will be the outcome,” Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, said Monday after a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels. “This is not Europe’s war, but Europe’s interests are directly at stake.”

Trent McDuffie was a young high school player in Southern California when the Rams returned from St. Louis to Los Angeles in 2016.

During Rams training camp that summer, McDuffie watched HBO “Hard Knocks” episodes about the team with his parents, and they were enamored by coach Sean McVay.

“I remember just being like, ‘Dang, I would like to play for that guy,’” McDuffie said Thursday.

McDuffie, an All-Pro cornerback acquired by the Rams in a blockbuster trade, recalled those thoughts during an introductory news conference at the team’s facility in Woodland Hills after he signed a record-breaking four-year extension that reportedly includes $100 million in guarantees.

“Fast forward all these years, and now I’m here and it’s just a full-circle moment,” he said of getting to play for McVay. “Watched this guy, wanted to play for this guy and now this guy wants me.”

To land McDuffie, Rams general manager Les Snead sent the Kansas City Chiefs the 29th overall pick and fifth- and sixth-round picks in this year’s draft, and a 2027 third-round pick.

The Rams also signed former Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson to a three-year contract that includes $34 million in guarantees.

The moves were a complete departure from last year, when the Rams wrongly gambled that a young and aggressive pass rush could offset their decision to not make a single upgrade to the secondary.

The additions of McDuffie and Watson to an already deep and talented roster that features reigning NFL most valuable player Matthew Stafford, the Rams will be a favorite to play in Super Bowl LXI at SoFi Stadium in February.

And make no mistake: Like they did in 2021, the Rams will do anything possible to ensure that owner Stan Kroenke is walking the Super Bowl sideline in the stadium he built in Inglewood.

McDuffie noted that the Rams have been “knocking on the door, year-in and year-out” since his rookie season with the Chiefs in 2022. A winning culture already is in place.

“This team is ready to go,” said McDuffie, a first-round pick out of Washington who starred in high school at Anaheim Servite and Bellflower St. John Bosco highs. “I don’t think I’m coming in here with a team that doesn’t understand the value that they have.

“So those little nuggets that I feel I can just pour into guys that can get us over the hump, I’m going to do everything I can.”

Rams cornerback Jaylen Watson speaks during his introductory news conference in Woodland Hills on Thursday.

(William Liang / Associated Press)

McDuffie and Watson, a 2022 seventh-round pick, were part of Chiefs teams that won two championships in three Super Bowl appearances.

“We really learned what it takes to win a Super Bowl, get to the Super Bowl, the preparation and the time it takes to be detailed in your craft,” McDuffie said.

When news about the trade broke last week, one of the first calls McDuffie answered was from Rams star receiver Puka Nacua, a former Washington teammate.

“He was just screaming at the top of his lungs,” McDuffie said. “I’m like ‘Puka, bro, I miss this energy. I miss what you bring.’ I’m just excited to be back on the field with him.”

McDuffie and Watson also are excited about continuing their partnership, which began when they were among five defensive backs drafted by the Chiefs four years ago.

Watson, 27, grew up in Georgia but played two seasons at Ventura College before finishing his college career at Washington State.

Like McDuffie, he is happy to be back in Southern California weather.

“Everyone’s just so nice here,” Watson said of the region, before quipping, “then you’ve got your taxes.”

The 5-foot-11 McDuffie and the 6-2 Watson will give secondary coach Jimmy Lake — who coached McDuffie in college — options for matchups.

“That’s why I think me and Trent complement each other so well,” Watson said. “His strengths are short-area quickness, the small shifty guys. And my strengths are the big receivers.

“So we should be pretty diverse. We should be able to match up pretty well against a lot of different looks we get.”

McDuffie and Watson join a cornerback group that includes Emmanuel Forbes Jr. The Rams have until May 1 to determine if they will exercise a fifth-year option on Forbes, a 2023 first-round draft pick by Washington who was claimed off waivers by the Rams in 2024.

Forbes will earn about $2 million this season, but would be guaranteed $12.6 million if the Rams exercise the option.

The Rams will begin offseason workouts in April.

McDuffie is happy to be back home.

“It’s hot, the sun’s out,” he said. “It’s a beautiful thing.”

COLUMBIA, S.C. — U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, the dean of South Carolina’s Democrats, said Thursday that he will run for an 18th House term, a move that could position him as an influential elder statesman in Congress if his party regains the majority in November.

The decision by the 85-year-old lawmaker cuts against calls for generational change within the party. Clyburn is one of several veteran Democrats running again instead of stepping aside for younger politicians whose frustration increased in the wake of President Biden’s failed reelection campaign.

“I’m here today to say I do believe that I’m very well equipped and healthy enough to move into the next term, trying to do the things that are necessary to continue that pursuit of perfection,” Clyburn said at state party headquarters in Columbia. “And so I will run a very vigorous campaign.”

Clyburn is among the oldest Democrats serving in Washington, and the only member of the last Democratic leadership team who is looking to stick around. Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and former Majority Leader Steny Hoyer of Maryland both plan to retire at the end of their current terms.

Clyburn said that he sought counsel from his three daughters before making his announcement. One of them — Mignon Clyburn, a former member of the Federal Communications Commission — said she was concerned about the political vitriol that her father would face in Washington.

“Her interest was in her daddy and what she thought I might be subjected to,” Clyburn said. “When Mignon finally had decided that she could live with it, I’m here.”

Clyburn said he heard from another woman that “‘we don’t listen to them people up there, and you should not. You should listen to the people down here, and we don’t want you to leave.’ And so I’m responding to the people that are here.”

Clyburn served as majority whip and assistant Democratic leader. Remaining in Congress for another term could give him a chance to serve alongside the first Black speaker of the House as Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York is in line for the gavel should Democrats win control. Clyburn for many years was the highest-ranking Black lawmaker in the House.

On Thursday, asked about the prospect of being able to advise Jeffries, Clyburn said the two spoke recently about a possible working relationship in the next Congress.

“He expressed an interest in my being a part of his leadership, if we were to take the House back,” Clyburn said. “It made me feel necessary.”

Four years ago, when Clyburn announced his bid for a 16th term, he told the Associated Press that he intended to keep campaigning as long as his health and support from his family remained stalwart.

“I’ve told them, if you ever see that I need to go to the rocking chair or spend my spare time on the golf course, let me know,” he said describing his daughters’ counsel.

Clyburn won his 2024 reelection by more than 20 percentage points. First elected in 1992, he represents the district that sweeps from areas around the capital of Columbia through rural central and eastern counties down to Charleston.

Should he serve an 18th term, Clyburn would become the longest-serving South Carolinian ever in the U.S. House. Time horizons are longer for the state’s U.S. senators, two of whom — Republican Strom Thurmond and Democrat Fritz Hollings — served 48 years and nearly 39 years, respectively.

Filing for election in this year’s elections in South Carolina opens Monday and closes March 30. South Carolina’s primary elections will be held June 9.

Whenever Clyburn does leave office, the competition to be his successor will be fierce. He is the only Democrat representing his state in Washington.

As to whether his 18th term could be his last, Clyburn called that an “open question.”

“I’m looking forward to the day that I can spend more time reading, writing and playing golf, and so this could very well be to my last term,” he said. “And it could very well not be.”

Kinnard writes for the Associated Press.

WASHINGTON — Cuba’s top diplomat in Washington says Havana is prepared to enter diplomatic talks with the United States, reiterating the country’s willingness to engage even as tensions escalate with President Trump asserting that the island nation’s government could soon collapse.

“We are ready to engage with the U.S. on the issues that are important for the bilateral relation, and to talk about those in which we have differences,” Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera, who leads Cuba’s mission in Washington, told The Times on Wednesday.

Any dialogue would need to respect Cuba’s sovereignty and its “right to self-determination,” the ambassador said.

“We are sure that it is possible to find a solution,” she said.

Her comments in a wide-ranging interview come at a particularly volatile moment for Cuba, which is under mounting economic pressure after the Trump administration imposed an oil blockade that has choked off the island’s energy supplies.

The measures have deepened a humanitarian crisis and prompted Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel to call for an “urgent” overhaul to the country’s economic model.

The situation in Cuba worsened after U.S. forces removed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January, allowing Washington to later cut off oil shipments from Venezuela to its longtime ally. The Trump administration later pressured other suppliers, including Mexico, to reduce deliveries.

“We are doing our best, and we are being very creative, but it has a serious impact,” Torres Rivera said of the blockade. “It is a collective punishment against the Cuban people.”

The White House this week framed Cuba’s worsening economic and humanitarian conditions as a potential opening to pressure Havana into negotiations.

“The country is obviously in a very weak place, economically speaking, the people are crying out for help, and the president believes and knows the Cuban regime wants a deal,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a news briefing Tuesday.

Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Florida) told the Miami Herald on Wednesday that the Trump administration had been having secret, high-level conversations with several people in former President Raul Castro’s inner circle, a similar approach that was taken in Venezuela before Maduro’s capture. (The operation to seize Maduro killed 32 Cuban officers stationed in the country.)

Cuban President Miguel Díaz -Canel, fourth from right, holds up a Cuban flag during a rally in Havana on Jan. 16, 2026, to protest the killing of Cuban officers during the U.S. operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

(Ramon Espinosa / Associated Press)

Another report by the USA Today this week said the Trump administration was close to announcing an economic deal with Cuba that would ease travel restrictions, among other things. A representative with the Cuban government declined to comment on the report.

The White House has not specified what a deal may look like. But Trump has said the United States is interested in a “friendly takeover” and has suggested that the move would allow Cubans to visit the island, a place that many Cuban exiles have worried about returning to while the current regime is in place.

“It is just a question of time before a lot of unbelievable people are going back to Cuba,” Trump said at an event last week.

Several news outlets have reported that the Justice Department is examining possible federal charges against officials within Cuba’s government, a move that could prompt a change in the island’s government.

Torres Rivera said she is aware of the reports but said the “judicial accusations” are an “instrument of political coercion without any legitimacy.”

“It is not something we are losing sleep over,” she said.

As for the potential negotiations, Torres Rivera did not provide specifics but talked about restoring diplomatic ties somewhat to how they existed during the Obama administration.

“We are neighbors,” she said. “We have common challenges, common threats, and we can speak about all that, and we can speak on the basis of respect for each other’s sovereignty and each other’s right of self-determination. We are ready for that.”

President Trump has approached diplomacy with Cuba with a harsher tone.

“As we achieve a historic transformation in Venezuela, we’re also looking forward to the great change that will soon be coming to Cuba,” Trump said Saturday, one week after U.S. and Israeli forces attacked Iran and killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

He added: “Cuba’s at the end of the line. They’re very much at the end of the line. They have no money. They have no oil. They have a bad philosophy. They have a bad regime that has been bad for a very long time.”

Trump said that he has put Secretary of State Marco Rubio in charge of leading the talks with Cuba and that he believes a “deal would be made very easily with Cuba.”

Torres Rivera did not offer an opinion on Rubio being tapped to lead the negotiations. Rubio is the son of Cuban immigrants who came to Florida three years before Castro’s brother, revolutionary Fidel Castro, rose to power in 1959. She reiterated that Cuba is “ready to engage” in talks regardless of who is leading them.

“We are not talking about persons, we are talking about the government and we are ready to engage with the U.S. to talk about the very important issues that we have in bilateral relations,” she said.

CHICAGO — The eventual end of the USC men’s basketball season came the same way that it fizzled out during the past month, with yet another second-half collapse that featured the added pain of overtime.

Tuesday’s 83-79 overtime loss to Washington in the Big Ten tournament, the Trojans’ eighth straight defeat, brought to a close what USC coach Eric Musselman called the toughest stretch of his coaching career. It included not only USC’s longest losing streak in a decade, but a pair of 19-point losses to UCLA and the dismissal of leading scorer Chad Baker-Mazara from the team in the past 10 days alone.

The Trojans led the Huskies by 13 in the second half and had chances to win at the end of regulation and overtime, only to miss all three potential game-winning or game-tying shots and go 2-for-5 from the free-throw line in overtime. For a team that was once in NCAA tournament consideration before stumbling, that failure to finish was a persistent flaw.

USC guard Alijah Arenas talks with coach Eric Musselman during the Trojans’ loss to the Huskies in the Big Ten tournament on Wednesday in Chicago.

(Michael Reaves / Getty Images)

“That’s been the story of our last eight games,” Musselman said. “I think we’ve led at halftime four of our last eight games, and as a group, we haven’t figured out how to close games, the last 20 minutes with a lead. It’s a disappointing last eight games of the season. I thought up until that point we played good basketball.”

With the Trojans likely to decline any postseason invitation, Musselman said, he was headed to the team hotel Tuesday night to get back to work filling out next season’s recruiting class, starting with more freshmen before the transfer portal officially opens next month.

That group already includes two top-30 recruits in the Ratliff twins, Adonis and Darius, but if USC learned anything from the way this season ended, all too similar to the way last season ended, it’s that whatever depth and talent Musselman has assembled in his two years at USC hasn’t been enough, whether that’s freshmen or transfers.

“We want a blend of both,” Musselman said. “It’s early in our tenure, and we’ve got to figure out a way to get better than what we’ve done the last two years.”

Tuesday, the Trojans had no shortage of chances to fend off the end.

They had a double-digit lead with 13 minutes to play. They had the ball at the end of regulation with the score tied. They had a chance to win it in overtime and were gifted a last-chance shot to tie it.

They missed all three pivotal shots — the first two by Kam Woods, the last a 3-pointer by Jordan Marsh — to see a game they once led comfortably slip away again and again.

“On the last one, I feel like I missed Ezra [Ausar] on that cut,” said Woods, a grad transfer who joined the team in midseason. “Coach trusted me with the ball in my hands, and I feel like I let him down.”

Woods finished with 24 points while Jacob Cofie scored 14, Marsh 13 and Ausar and Ryan Cornish 10 each for 13th-seeded USC (18-14) as the 12th-seeded Huskies (16-16) beat the Trojans for the third time this season.

Freshman Alijah Arenas, who led the Trojans in scoring in both games without Baker-Mazara, was held to six points on 3-for-10 shooting and sat out the final six minutes of regulation and all but eight seconds of overtime. Musselman said that was his decision, as was the virtual absence of senior Terrance Williams, who played only one minute.

That left USC with what was essentially a six-player rotation to conclude a season that began without the injured Arenas and ended without Rodney Rice and Amarion Dickerson, both hurt, as well as the departed Baker-Mazara — all of which factored into Musselman’s position on any postseason plans.

“I haven’t had in-depth conversations with the administration yet about that, but I would assume we’re not going to play, just based on the number of bodies and how we played the last eight games,” Musselman said.

It was not all that long ago that USC was thinking about the NCAA tournament. Winners of the Maui Invitational, USC was 18-6 and above .500 in the Big Ten standings after a February 8 win at Penn State, solidly in a workable position on the NCAA tournament bubble.

But as the injuries mounted and momentum waned, second-half struggles just like the Trojans’ on Tuesday became an increasingly fatal flaw as they slumped to their longest losing streak in a decade. The loss to Washington compounded the misery of a second straight frustrating season, in familiar fashion.

“As a team, we faced a lot of adversity,” Cofie said. “I felt like we did a good job sticking with it and trying to play for each other. We had to deal with a lot of injuries. I felt like that played a huge deal in it. We still fought. We tried our best.”

The 28-year-old described it as a “special moment” and said he “really got emotional” when he realised the scale of his achievement.

“I wish I could relive it twice,” Adebayo said.

Paying tribute to his family and trainers, he said: “They’ve seen me at the lowest, at the bottom of the bottom, trying to figure out how to really pick myself up.

“To have this moment and share it with all them, it’s a pretty emotional moment.”

The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 120-106 at home thanks to Luka Doncic’s 31 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

The Lakers climbed to fourth in the Western Conference, ahead of the Timberwolves on a tie-breaker as they both have 40-25 records.

Eastern Conference leaders the Detroit Pistons moved to 46-18 with a 138-100 win at the Brooklyn Nets as Jalen Duren scored 26 points.

INDIANAPOLIS — The UCLA women’s basketball team’s tear through the Big Ten continued on Friday, as the Bruins defeated Washington 78-60 to advance to the conference tournament semifinals.

Behind 26 points from center Lauren Betts, the No. 1 seed Bruins took down No. 8 seed Huskies with an explosive second half to stay undefeated in conference play.

Washington (21-10, 11-9), which defeated No. 9 seed USC on Thursday to advance to the quarterfinal, struggled to respond to UCLA’s second-half surge and trailed by 19 in the fourth quarter.

UCLA (22-1, 19-0), the second ranked team in the nation in the Associated Press top 25 poll, started slow, missing five consecutive shots in a five-plus minute scoring drought in the first quarter. The Bruins’ six first-quarter points were a season low.

The Huskies extended a 10-point lead into the second quarter. Betts, though, kept the Bruins’ deficit from growing with 10 points in the first half, sparking a 15-2 run during the final 6:10. UCLA, which boasts the best three-point percentage in the Big Ten, didn’t make any treys in the first half and didn’t hit one until Kiki Rice’s with 5:27 left in the third quarter.

It tied for the worst three-point shooting performance from the Bruins this season (one for 10).

UCLA led 27-24 at halftime.

Washington went up briefly in the third quarter, powered by 18 points from guard Avery Howell, but the Bruins scoring finally found their rhythm shortly after. UCLA shot 54% overall from the field.

It was UCLA’s 10th consecutive win against the Huskies. It was the Bruins’ 23rd straight win overall after last losing on Nov. 26.

UCLA will face the winner of No. 4 seed Minnesota and No. 5 seed Ohio State in a Big Ten tournament semifinal on Saturday, with a berth in the Big Ten championship game on the line.

The Ducks bolstered their blueline Thursday night in anticipation of ending their long playoff drought, acquiring veteran defenseman John Carlson in a trade with the Washington Capitals.

In exchange for Carlson, the Ducks will send a conditional first-round pick (2026 or 2027 draft) and a third-round pick (2027) to Washington.

Carlson, who played an integral part of the Capitals’ 2018 Stanley Cup win and is a former Norris Trophy runner-up for the NHL’s top defenseman, should bring a veteran presence to a young Ducks team that is on pace to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

“John Carlson brings leadership, character, a high hockey IQ and a presence to our lineup,” Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said in a statement. “We are very excited to add a Stanley Cup winner to complement our group and make a big push down the stretch.”

Set to become a free agent this offseason, Carlson had 10 goals and 46 points in 55 games with the Capitals this season. He led all Washington skaters in ice time, averaging more than 23 minutes per game.

Carlson, however, has not played since Feb. 5 because of a lower-body injury. It’s unclear when he might make his Ducks debut, but was practicing with the Capitals before the trade. When he does get into the lineup, he’ll join Jacob Trouba and Radko Gudas as part of a formidable right-side defensive trio for the Ducks.

In 1,143 career games over 17 seasons entirely with Washington, Carlson recorded 771 points (166 goals, 605 assists) — ranking him 24th all-time among NHL defensemen. He also had 78 points in 137 playoff games. A two-time All-Star, Carlson played for the U.S. at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games and in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. He also scored the winning goal for the U.S. in the 2010 World Junior Championship.

The Ducks are second in the Pacific Division and have won 13 of their last 16 games. They face the Montreal Canadiens on Friday and the St. Louis Blues on Sunday before embarking on a four-game Canadian road trip.

The Carlson deal was finalized roughly 14 hours before Friday’s NHL trade deadline at noon PST.

INDIANAPOLIS — If the USC women’s basketball hoped to make a case for a favorable NCAA tournament seed, the Trojans did themselves no favors during the past two weeks culminating with Thursday’s Big Ten tournament loss.

The No. 9 seed Trojans let a second-round tournament contest against No. 8 seed Washington get out of hand in the third quarter, stumbling to a 76-64 loss at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. USC’s conference run ended quickly after the Trojans delivered one of their worst offensive outings of the season.

It was USC’s fourth consecutive loss, putting its NCAA tournament positioning in question.

USC (17-13, 9-10) didn’t make its first three-pointer until the 3:30 mark in the second quarter, just the Trojans’ fifth made basket of the game overall. The Trojans trailed 32-20 at the half while shooting just 25%.

Washington (21-9, 11-8) took a 20-point lead near the end of the third quarter while USC struggled to 1-for-7 shooting during that stretch.

USC made it a 10-point game with 1:51 to play as the Trojans’ aggressive half-court press forced Washington turnovers, but even the team’s 26-point fourth quarter couldn’t rescue it.

The Huskies and Trojans entered Thursday with the third and fourth best defenses in the conference, respectively. That didn’t deter a Washington offense that shot 50%, its fourth-best effort all season.

But USC was stymied and put up its fourth-worst shooting of the year at 31%. Point guard and Big Ten freshman of the year Jazzy Davidson shot 2-for-13 after briefly leaving the game in the first quarter with a right shoulder injury and playing the rest of the contest with it wrapped under her jersey. She didn’t see the floor again after the 7:12 mark in the fourth quarter.

Davidson said after the loss she is getting an MRI on her shoulder to determine the extent of the injury.

Washington outrebounded USC 43-26. Huskies guard Elle Ladine led the game with 25 points. Londynn Jones netted 19 for the Trojans.

USC entered Thursday boasting the No. 22 NET ranking in the country and will likely get an at-large NCAA tournament bid, but Thursday’s loss put a good seed in peril.

The Huskies will face No. 1 seed UCLA (28-1, 18-0) in the quarterfinal on Friday at 9 a.m.

Inside the Washington bubble, we look inside the chaos shaping the US-Israeli war on Iran, from celebrations at DC power dinners and the Secretary of State admitting US defense of Israel to the Epstein files fading from public view. With low popular support for the war, can American voters do anything to stop it?

In this episode: 

• Patty Culhane (@PattyCulhane), Al Jazeera English Correspondent

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Marcos Bartolomé, Sari el-Khalili, and Catherine Nouhan, with Spencer Cline, Tuleen Barakat, Maya Hamadeh, and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Alexandra Locke. Special thanks to James Hamilton.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.

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Sixth-year senior guard Chad Baker-Mazara, who spent most of this season as the Trojans top scorer, is no longer with USC’s men’s basketball program, the school announced Sunday.

A person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly said that it wasn’t any one incident, but an accumulation of issues that led to Baker-Mazara’s departure.

Baker-Mazara left Saturday’s loss to Nebraska a few minutes into the second half after he chased down a lay-in and fell hard on the court. USC coach Eric Musselman said after the game that Baker-Mazara told coaches he was unable to return to the game.

After lead guard Rodney Rice was lost for the season in November, Baker-Mazara stepped into the void as the Trojans’ top scorer, averaging 26 points per game over the remaining seven games of USC’s non-conference slate.

Baker-Mazara became less reliable through Big Ten play. Five times during USC’s conference schedule, he has played fewer than 20 minutes in a game, for one reason or another. At times, his health was what held Baker-Mazara back. Other times, it was less clear.

His exit on the doorstep of March is just another ominous sign for the Trojans, who have lost five in a row. USC has two games still remaining in its regular season slate, with a trip to Washington on tap Wednesday and a home tilt with UCLA next weekend.

SAN ANTONIO — A heated U.S. Senate race in Texas entered its final stretch Sunday with candidates from both parties making final pitches to voters ahead of Tuesday’s primary, the nation’s first big contest of the 2026 midterm elections.

Republican Sen. John Cornyn is trying to avoid being the first incumbent GOP senator from Texas to lose a primary, fighting challenges from Texas Atty. Gen. Ken Paxton and U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt.

Democrats, hungry to win a Senate race in the state for the first time since 1988, see an opening, but have their own knotty race to figure out.

U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a rhetorical brawler and regular antagonist to President Trump, is stressing her federal experience and was scheduled to meet voters in the Dallas area with Sen. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland. Crockett was endorsed Friday by former Vice President Kamala Harris.

State Rep. James Talarico, a soft-spoken seminarian who emphasizes his crossover appeal to Republicans, was set to hold a rally in San Antonio as part of a final tour that he describes as a movement.

But Cornyn’s precarious stature as an incumbent vulnerable in his party’s primary has been the focus of a majority of the the massive sums spent by both sides in the run-up to Tuesday’s balloting.

“Complacency is a killer,” Cornyn told voters Saturday at a seafood restaurant in the Woodlands, a Houston suburb. “It kills relationships. It kills careers.”

Senate Republican leaders in Washington, working to hold their thin majority, have worried out loud for months that Democrats could have a shot at a long out-of-reach Texas seat if Republicans nominate Paxton, who is popular with Trump voters but has had years of legal problems, which led to his impeachment three years ago. He was acquitted.

Talarico, who has raised more money than Crockett, is part of the Texas primary’s record fundraising pace. His campaign has spent $13 million on television advertising since the start of the year, the most of any single entity in the crowded field of groups spending on either side, according to the ad-tracking firm AdImpact.

Heading into Tuesday’s primary elections, the cost of advertising and reserved advertising time had topped $110 million, the most ever for a Senate primary. Most of it — more than $67 million — had been spent by Cornyn’s campaign and allied groups, much of it attacking Paxton, but also lately trying to keep Hunt from advancing.

If no candidate receives at least 50% of the vote Tuesday, the primary proceeds to a runoff between the top two vote recipients on May 26.

A late visit to Texas on Friday by Trump, who used the Port of Corpus Christi as a backdrop for a speech highlighting energy production, drew all of the top Republican candidates. And while the president said Friday he’s “pretty much” decided whom to endorse, he declined to name him.

“We have a great attorney general, Ken Paxton. Where’s Ken? Hi, Ken,” Trump said. He continued, “And we have a great senator, John Cornyn. Hi, John.”

Noting that they’re in a “little bit of a race,” Trump added: ’It’s going to be an interesting one, right? They’re both great people.”

Despite his long career in Texas politics, Paxton has painted himself as a Washington outsider and a staunch supporter of Trump.

“I’m not going up to Washington, D.C., to join the swamp club,” Paxton said at a campaign event in Fort Worth. “I will go up there and fight for you.”

Beaumont and Murphy write for the Associated Press and reported from San Antonio and Oklahoma City, respectively.