Cuban officials said Wednesday that four people were killed, and six others were injured, after a speedboat that had allegedly come from Florida entered its waters and began firing at Cuban border patrol troops.

The Cuban Ministry of the Interior said the boat, which displayed a Florida registration number and carried 10 Cuban nationals who lived in the United States, approached within 1 nautical mile northeast of the El Pino canal in Cayo Falcones. 

Cuba said that when five members of the Border Guard Troops approached the Florida boat for identification, people on the boat allegedly began shooting at the Cubans and injured its commanding officer.

"As a result of the confrontation .... four aggressors were killed and six were injured, who were evacuated and received medical assistance," the ministry said in a statement. 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance told reporters that the Trump administration is investigating the incident, and Rubio made clear he was not just taking Cuba's account of the incident but would respond in an appropriate manner once the facts of the exchange come in.

Cuba has defended its response to the alleged attack by claiming it was protecting its waters "based on the principle that national defense is a fundamental pillar for the Cuban State in order to protect its sovereignty and stability in the region."

The Cuban ministry said Wednesday night that the passengers were armed with assault rifles, handguns, Molotov cocktails, bulletproof vests, telescopic sights and camouflage uniforms.

The ministry also claimed the occupants of the boat were attempting to "carry out an infiltration for terrorist purposes." One occupant of the boat was arrested in Cuba.

The six people who were injured in the incident have been identified by Cuba as Amijail Sánchez González, Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez, Conrado Galindo Sariol, José Manuel Rodríguez Castelló, Cristian Ernesto Acosta Guevara and Roberto Azcorra Consuegra. The United States has not verified the identities. 

A United States official told the New York Times that the boat was a U.S. civilian vessel that was part of a small fleet to get relatives out of Cuba and was not a U.S. Coast Guard or Naval vessel.