A US political analyst Bill Kristol has set social media ablaze after he suggested that the United States annex Cuba. In his post on Twitter the 68-year-old wrote about why he wants federal district Washington DC to become a state and noted that Puerto Rico and Cuba too should be part of the United States.
His remark about annexation of Cuba caused a torrent of comments with users criticising the analyst for what they described as an "idiotic" idea.
Some thought that the suggestion came from a parody account.
Many users reminded Kristol that Cuba is a sovereign state and said Cubans will never want to join the United States.
Others criticised the analyst for insisting Cuba is not "free".
Many netizens, including the conservative ones, contended that annexing Cuba will be the end of US.
Despite the overall criticism Kristol’s post received 26,000 likes and some users even backed the analyst’s proposal.
This is not the first time that Kristol has said something which has caused astonishment: he was a strong advocate for the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and argued for an increase in the number of US troops in the country when the situation began to deteriorate. He supported the 2006 Lebanon War, claiming it was the US "war too".
The United States won Cuba, Puerto Rico and other territories from Spain after a brief war in 1898. Cuba gained independence from the US in 1902 but the authorities then in power were regarded as client states of Washington. Under Cuba’s first constitution, the United States retained the right to intervene in Cuban affairs to supervise economy and foreign relations. Relations between the two states drastically deteriorated after the Cuban revolution, when Fidel Castro came to power.
Puerto Rico is unincorporated territory of the United States. Since 1917 all residents born on the island have become US citizens. However, Puerto Ricans are not allowed to vote in US presidential elections or elect their own senators and representatives to the US congress. In November 2020 the island held a statehood referendum during which 52 percent of voters voiced to be admitted into the Union as a state. The referendum was non-binding.