Trump: US 'stands by' Cuban freedom

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump on Monday said the United States "stands by" Cubans seeking freedom and accused the island's communist government of attacking democracy in the region.

"On this Cuban Independence Day, we stand by the people of Cuba in their quest for freedom, democracy and prosperity," he tweeted. "The United States will not stand idly by as Cuba continues to subvert democracy in the Americas!"

Trump's message, also insisting that "the Cuban regime must end its repression of Cubans & Venezuelans," marked the anniversary of the foundation of the Cuban republic on May 20, 1902.

The communist government in Cuba instead celebrates independence on October 10.

This was the start of the independence struggle against colonial rulers Spain in 1868, rather than the May 1902 date, which is seen as having ushered in a period of US dominance, broken only by the victory of Fidel Castro's revolution in 1959.