Cuban diplomat denies that releasing political prisoners is part of US negotiations

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Havana will not abide by any American “ultimatums” to release political prisoners as part of new talks, a Cuban diplomat said Thursday, while asserting that leaders are “preparing for all scenarios” if U.S. President Donald Trump makes good on threats to intervene in the island nation.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Cuban Ambassador to the U.N. Ernesto Soberón Guzmán said internal issues regarding detainees “are not on the negotiating table.” The release of political prisoners was a key U.S. demand as the longtime adversaries held discussions in Cuba this month for the first time in a decade.

“We have our legal system, like here in the U.S., they have their legal system,” he said. “So we have to respect both of our internal affairs.”

In response, the State Department said in a statement that the administration remains “committed to the release of all political prisoners.”

“The Cuban regime should stop playing games as direct talks are occurring. They have a small window to make a deal,” the statement continued.

An American delegation arrived for secret meetings in Havana on April 10 in a diplomatic push to urge Cuba to make major changes to its economy and political governance or face continued economic pressure and potentially risk U.S. military escalation. Neither side has named who took part, but Guzmán said it was at the undersecretary of state level for the Americans and deputy foreign minister level for the Cubans.

Despite the recent revival in diplomatic relations, tensions between the two countries have steadily increased in the last few months over a U.S. energy blockade that has further strained economic and other crises in the Caribbean country.

Trump has threatened tariffs on any country that sells or supplies oil to Cuba and said the U.S. might have “the honor of taking Cuba” following military operations in Venezuela and Iran. The State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Guzmán's remarks.

The blockade, coupled with the island’s severe water and power shortages, has deepened poverty and increased hunger across Cuba as severe blackouts persist.

In late March, a Russian tanker carrying 730,000 barrels became the first fuel shipment Cuba had received in three months. Guzmán said that the shipment has been able to fulfill only a fraction of what the country needs to operate.

Other concerns the U.S. raised during the meeting this month centered on the influence of foreign powers on the island, the AP has reported. The Americans also discussed proposals to compensate hundreds of thousands of legal claims by Cuban Americans whose homes, businesses and land were seized after revolutionary leader Fidel Castro took power in 1959.

Guzmán confirmed that such compensation was among the topics at the meeting and that Havana is receptive to it. But, he added, that it could only happen in conjunction with reciprocal economic relief for the decadeslong economic embargo against Cuba.

“There is not only this claim but also the claim from our side because the embargo has an economic impact,” he said. “This is a highway with two directions.”

Asked whether Cuban officials can trust diplomatic efforts amid U.S. threats, Guzmán said that while they are optimistic about creating a “new approach” to U.S.-Cuban relations, the Trump administration's foreign policy approach in the last year has put them on high alert.

“We have been seeing what is happening all around the world, in our region, in the Middle East, so we are not a naive person,” he said. “We are preparing for all the scenarios. And I insist, our first option — what we really want — is a successful dialogue with the U.S. government.”

But, he added, if U.S. military aggression were to happen, “we are ready to fight back.”

Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters in New York, Thursday, April 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters in New York, Thursday, April 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters in New York, Thursday, April 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters in New York, Thursday, April 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Ernesto Soberón Guzmán, Cuban ambassador to the United Nations, speaks to reporters in New York, Thursday, April 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

President Donald Trump on Thursday announced a deal with drugmaker Regeneron to lower the cost of its pharmaceutical products as part of the White House's signature drug pricing initiative.

The deal involves Regeneron lowering the prices of all its current and future drugs on Medicaid, according to Trump. It also involves selling a cholesterol drug called Praluent for $225 on the White House's discounted drug website TrumpRx, according to the agreement first outlined by NOTUS and confirmed in a White House fact sheet.

The deal comes as the Trump administration has been touting efforts to provide economic relief ahead of November's midterm elections, with Americans saying high costs for health care, gas, groceries and other basic needs are straining their budgets.

It's one of many so-called most-favored-nation deals the Trump administration has made with drug companies to bring U.S. pharmaceutical prices to the same level as other developed nations. Last July, Trump publicly sent letters to executives at 17 major pharmaceutical companies about the issue. Regeneron is the final one of those companies to strike a deal with his administration.

Speaking at the White House on Thursday to announce the deal, Trump touted the discounts on drugs and said, “It should be front page news.” He said voters in this November's midterm elections should reward his party because of the agreements with drugmakers.

“We should win the midterms, but it doesn’t work that way, unfortunately,” Trump said.

Trump also has a notable history with the drugmaker.

During his first term in 2020, when he was hospitalized with COVID-19, he was given a dose of a drug that Regeneron was testing to supply antibodies in order to help his immune system.

After he was released, Trump posted a video of himself standing outside the White House in which he repeatedly lavished praise on Regeneron.

As part of the new deal, Regeneron has also committed to spending $27 billion in research, development and manufacturing in the U.S., according to the White House fact sheet. Trump’s deals have historically offered companies relief from his tariffs if they make such commitments.

Regeneron also announced Thursday that Otarmeni, its new gene therapy for a rare form of congenital hearing loss, had been approved by the Food and Drug Administration and would be made available to clinically eligible individuals in the U.S. at no charge. The therapy received expedited approval from the FDA under the agency’s so-called Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher program.

The program, which was not authorized by Congress, has been under scrutiny from Democrats in Congress for months. House and Senate lawmakers have noted that FDA vouchers have repeatedly gone to companies that agree to pricing concessions sought by the White House.

Even as Trump and his Department of Health and Human Services have touted his drug-pricing deals as transformative, the details of the agreements have so far not been made public.

Pressed by members of Congress to share the contracts this week, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said his team would share whatever details it could that didn't include proprietary information or trade secrets. Trump and Kennedy have urged Congress to codify the deals into law.

The deals have occasionally run into roadblocks. A centerpiece of the agreements with weight-loss drugmakers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk fell apart earlier this week when Medicare delayed implementation of a program for insurers to cover the GLP-1 drugs.

Drug prices for patients in the U.S. can depend on a number of factors, including the competition a treatment faces and insurance coverage. Most people have coverage through work, the individual insurance market or government programs like Medicaid and Medicare, which shield them from much of the cost.

Patients on Medicaid, the state and federally funded program for people with low incomes, already pay a nominal co-payment of a few dollars to fill their prescriptions, but lower prices could help state budgets that fund the programs.

Associated Press writers Matthew Perrone and Michelle L. Price contributed to this report.

Sierra Smith holds her son Travis, 2, during an event on health care affordability with President Donald Trump, and others, in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks speaks during an event on health care affordability in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks as President Donald Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick listen during an event on health care affordability in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Travis Smith, 2, crawls on the floor as President Donald Trump speaks during an event on health care affordability in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

President Donald Trump speaks during an event on health care affordability in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday, April 23, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies before a Senate Committee on Finance hearing on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, April 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

President Donald Trump speaks during an event for NCAA national champions in the State Dining Room of the White House, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)