The now-infamous scenes of far-left activists descending upon Cuba in recent days were preceded by high-level meetings between leaders within the Singham Network and the strongman head of Communist Cuba earlier this month.

Earlier in March, in the lead up to this past weekend’s events, the leaders of the Singham-linked People’s Forum, Tricontential: Institute for Social Research, Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER) Coalition, the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL), and the International Peoples’ Assembly all traveled to Havana for a warm “solidarity” meeting with Miguel Díaz-Canel, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba.

The so-called “humanitarian” trips to Cuba over the weekend — which continue to unfold this week — were in large part organized by groups within the activist network tied to and funded by wealthy Marxist and China-based businessman Neville Roy Singham, as well as by the far-left Progressive International (which counts the leftist anti-war group Code Pink, which is personally and financially tied to Singham, as one of its member organizations).

Just the News has previously reported on how these and other radical activist groups have leadership links or financial ties to the funding network backed by Singham, who himself is linked to the CCP and whom some in his network call "Comrade” — and who has also been scrutinized by Republican congressional investigators.

An outlet tied to the Singham Network, the leader of Progressive International, and Code Pink all said that the first ship carrying supplies had arrived in Cuba on Monday.

Progressive International, the Singham Network organizations, and the Cuban Embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Just the News.

Trump and Rubio say Cuba needs new leadership

Trump said on Air Force One earlier in March that “Cuba's a failed nation. Cuba also wants to make a deal. And I think we will pretty soon — either make a deal, or do whatever we have to do. And so we are talking to Cuba […] So I think something will happen with Cuba pretty quickly.” The president made similar remarks in the Oval Office this month.

“All my life I’ve been hearing about the United States and Cuba. You know, ‘When will the United States do it?’ I do believe I’ll be having the honor of taking Cuba. That’d be good. That’s a big honor,” Trump said. The president added, “Whether I free it, take it — think I could do anything I want with it, you want to know the truth.”

Trump: "Actions of the government of Cuba constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat"

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who comes from a Cuban refugee family, also weighed in last week. “Cuba has an economy that doesn’t work and a political and governmental system that can’t fix it,” Rubio said. “So they have to change dramatically […] They’re in a lot of trouble. And the people in charge don’t know how to fix it. So they have to get new people in charge.”

Trump had signed an executive order in late January where he declared that “I find that the policies, practices, and actions of the Government of Cuba constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat, which has its source in whole or substantial part outside the United States, to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.”

“The Government of Cuba has taken extraordinary actions that harm and threaten the United States,” the president said. “The regime aligns itself with — and provides support for — numerous hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors adverse to the United States, including the Government of the Russian Federation, the People’s Republic of China, the Government of Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah.”

The White House quickly put out a fact sheet which noted that Trump “signed an Executive Order declaring a national emergency and establishing a process to impose tariffs on goods from countries that sell or otherwise provide oil to Cuba, protecting U.S. national security and foreign policy from the Cuban regime’s malign actions and policies.”

The fact sheet noted that Trump “may modify the Order if Cuba or affected countries take significant steps to address the threat or align with U.S. national security and foreign policy objectives.”

Singham Network affirms “solidarity with the Revolution” in meeting with Cuban leader

The Cuban government’s official website in early March wrote that “the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic, Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez, received members of the delegation of the International Peoples' Assembly, who have been developing a program on the Island since last Sunday motivated by cooperation and solidarity.”

The Cuban government wrote that “the purpose of the above, the dignitary said, is to confront with coordinated actions the ideological, cultural and media war of the United States government, which is an expression of its hegemonic ambition.”

Diaz-Canel reportedly directed a message to “Brian Becker and Manolo de Los Santos - from the Party for Socialism and Liberation of the United States — and other brothers from Africa, Europe and Latin America” and stated that “we expected no less from you as representatives of the International Peoples' Assembly.”   

Diaz-Canel shared a message on X in early March touting the meeting with the far-left Singham Network leaders.

“I held a fraternal meeting with the delegation from the International Assembly of the Peoples, who are carrying out a visit to our country, to reaffirm their permanent support and solidarity with the Revolution, at this moment when the threats of Yankee imperialism are intensifying,” the Cuban leader said, in a tweet translated by Google and by X.

Diaz-Canel specifically described “Brian Becker and Manolo De Los Santos, from the Party for Socialism and Liberation of the United States” as among the “friends of our people” who “reaffirmed their solidarity.”

“The accompaniment of spaces such as the International Assembly of the Peoples demonstrates the broad support that the Revolution possesses, and that we are never and will never be alone in the struggle for the defense of our sovereignty in the face of the constant imperial pretensions,” the leader of the Communist-run island added.

The International Peoples’ Assembly quickly reshared the X message from the Communist leader.

“Cuba is not alone!” the Singham Network group declared. “Movement leaders from across the world, part of the International Peoples' Assembly delegation, met with President Miguel Díaz‑Canel to reaffirm unwavering solidarity with the Cuban Revolution and its people, who are facing the ongoing illegal US blockade.”

Manolo De Los Santos, a founder of the People’s Forum and a researcher at Tricontinental, tweeted a photo of himself hugging the Cuban leader in early March. “Today, we met with President Miguel Diaz-Canel not to make statements, but to stand shoulder to shoulder,” De Los Santos said on X. “Trump’s extreme fuel blockade is a brutal act of economic warfare, and we refuse to be silent bystanders. We are comrades with the Cuban people in the fight to dismantle it.”

The People’s Dispatch — also part of the Singham Network — reported that ANSWER leader and PSL founder Brian Becker was also at the meeting. The Cancilleria de Cuba — Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs — also shared photos from the meeting, including of De Los Santos, Becker, and others.

“International Assembly of the Peoples' Delegation, made up of representatives from various countries, visits Cuba and holds exchanges with diverse sectors to learn about the country's reality and reaffirm international solidarity,” the Cuban government account said on X.

One day after De Los Santos met with Cuba’s president, the People’s Forum tweeted that “this month, we’re going to Cuba with 40 young organizers!”

“Our delegation of young people will meet, exchange, and stand together with Cuban youth — building bonds of solidarity at a moment when the Cuban people face the full force and brutality of the U.S. blockade,” the Marxist forum said on X. “This brigade is part of a broader wave of solidarity — one that has moved over 3k people to donate more than $500,000 to send solar generators & panels to Cuban hospitals.”

The People’s Forum added: “Along with other delegations of people from around the world part of the "Nuestra America Convoy," we will deliver humanitarian aid to the Cuban people and reaffirm that a blockade will never sever the ties between peoples who share a common struggle for dignity and justice.”

Progressive International — linked to Singham Network — takes lead in Cuba convoy

James Schneider, the communications director for Progressive International, said on the socialist Workers Lit podcast in mid-March that “the Nuestra America ‘Convoy for Cuba’ brings together people of conscience from around the world to bring humanitarian aid to Cuba by air, land, and sea.”

The “Nuestra America — Convoy to Cuba” website contends that “we are mobilizing to Cuba, bringing critical humanitarian aid for its people” and that “the Trump administration is strangling the island, cutting off fuel, flights, and critical supplies for survival.”

Code Pink is one of the eleven North American member organizations within Progressive International.

Progressive International’s advisory council also includes a top member of the Communist Cuban government. Mariela Castro Espin is a Deputy of the National Assembly of People's Power and is also the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education in Havana. She is the daughter of former Cuban Communist leader Raul Castro, and the niece of former Cuban Communist dictator Fidel Castro.

Jeremy Corbyn, a far-left member of Parliament in the United Kingdom and a former leader of the Labour Party, is also on the advisory council. Corbyn had said on Instagram late last week that “the United States is suffocating the Cuban people with its criminal and inhumane blockade” and “that’s why we are mobilizing to Cuba, bringing critical humanitarian aid for its people. Honoured to join this historic mission.”

Corbyn also tweeted late last week that “the United States is intentionally starving the people of Cuba with its illegal and barbaric blockade” and “that’s why I’m joining the Nuestra America convoy to Cuba.”

Communist activists seek to link Gaza and Cuba

Last year’s “Gaza Sumud Flotilla” — a so-called “humanitarian” boat convoy which included leftwing activist Greta Thunberg and Progressive International leader David Adler — allegedly helped inspire last weekend’s Cuba-related effort. Ironically, Thunberg, who made her name and fortune opposing fossil fuels, has now demanded that the U.S. end its blockade of oil imports to the island regime.

The People’s Forum drags Palestine into it

Adler was part of the Gaza flotilla last year, and was imprisoned in Israel for a few days before being deported to Jordan. Adler late last week attempted to link Gaza and Cuba, tweeting, “We need to talk about Miami’s capture of US-Cuba policy in the same terms that we talk about AIPAC’s capture of Israel: corrupt, anti-democratic, and fundamentally contrary to our genuine national interests.”

The Gaza flotilla was also promoted by the Peoples Dispatch and supported by the People’s Forum, Code Pink, the International Peoples’ Assembly, the PSL, Prashad, and others within the Singham Network.

The People’s Forum’s “Political Education” webpage notes that “we have launched “Let Cuba Live”, an emergency relief fundraiser in light of the electric blackout, hurricane and the 60+ year U.S. brutal blockade.” 

Poverty tourism disguised as activism

Despite the blackout, notably, the People's Forum and Code Pink supporters, including Medea Benjamin and Jodie Evans, founders of Code Pink reportedly stayed in a 5-star hotel. According to The New York Post, the hotel was the only building in Havana with power as "they pretended to bring food and medicine to the suffering Cuban people."

The Post Millenial reported that "Many were seen staying at high-end accommodations, including the Gran Hotel Bristol Meliá Collection, where rooms range from roughly $130 to $520 per night. Others traveled in air-conditioned buses and attended official meetings in the capital." Meanwhile, the island still suffers an electrical blackout.

"While nearly the entire country is suffering from power outages lasting over 20 hours, the left is welcomed with air conditioning and wasteful electricity consumption,” Mayra Dominguez, a Cuban living in exile in the U.S. told The Post Millenial.

The Marxist forum has run multiple fundraisers related to this effort. The group’s “Let Cuba Live” donation page tells its followers: “We must act and send aid. Help us stop the Trump Administration from creating famine in Cuba. Donate now. Send power. Save lives.”

The forum’s tips for donating include: “*Please do not write ‘Cuba’ in donation comments or on the memo line of checks. Simply write ‘Urgent Aid.’ Donations by check are to be made directly payable to The People’s Forum, with the group noting that “all donations are tax-deductible.”

Granma, the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, said late last week that “medical supplies and other materials have arrived in the country as part of the Solidarity Convoy, which joins other global campaigns in support of the island.”

The Communist outlet quoted De Los Santos, who claimed that "the Cuban people have made immense sacrifices for humanity, for the dignity of all the peoples of the world, including the people of the United States” and so he and other activists wanted to show “above all, a militant solidarity that says ‘No’ to the genocidal attempt to crush the Cuban people."

The Cuban Embassy in the U.S. on Saturday said that “hundreds of people are arriving in Havana as part of the ‘Nuestra América’ Convoy in solidarity with Cuba” and so “let’s hear what motivates its protagonists to join this humanistic initiative.”

The video on X from the Cuban Embassy included an interview with multiple people wearing “Let Cuba Breathe” t-shirts, including De Los Santos.

“We’re in Havana’s Pogolotti neighborhood, not in hotels, living what Cubans endure regularly: no power since last night,” De Los Santos tweeted Saturday. “Our neighbors are living under the US govt's economic warfare, denied water, food, internet connection by Trump’s fuel blockade. The U.S. is waging a cruel, genocidal siege with the hope of crushing the Cuban people into submission. The world must act now.”

Cuban diplomat Pedro Pablo Prada on Sunday reposted the People’s Forum leader, saying, “Our gratitude for your outstanding solidarity and for bringing a real picture of #Cuba to #US and to the world. #HandsOffCuba #LetCubaBreathe.”

The People’s Forum shared Facebook posts from Cuba over the weekend touting their “internationalist solidarity” and proclaiming their efforts “directly challenging the U.S. Blockade!”

The Marxist group also said on Facebook this weekend that “the lessons we learn from seeing the inhumane and barbaric U.S. blockade on Cuba & Trump’s insistence on tightening the measures—whether through fuel blockage or colonial threats—is that we must commit to the long-term struggle to end the blockade and stand with the Cuban people.”

“We want a world without sanctions, without blockades, without genocides, without war against the people of Iran,” De Los Santos said in his Cuba speech posted by the People’s Forum. “We want a world where Palestine is free.”

The People’s Forum on Saturday shared photos of De Los Santos and others in Cuba.

“Together in a historic mission of solidarity, people from across the globe — from the Nuestra América Convoy — have gathered in Havana to declare that Cuba will never be alone,” the group said on X.

Singham Network groups parrot communist propaganda

The People’s Dispatch late last week cited Mirthia Brossard of the Young Communist League of Cuba, who said that “we are ready to defend our land at any cost” and that “this is the commitment of the young Cuban people.”

The article by the Singham Network outlet also quoted De Los Santos, and said that “40 young organizers from across North America traveled to the island as part of the Let Cuba Live Youth Brigade.”

“This is not the end of the revolution; this is another stage. This is our Moncada, our Bay of Pigs. The young people of Cuba trust in the revolution and have confidence that we will overcome this moment … we are building the future with our own hands,” the outlet quoted Brossard as saying.

The far-left outlet also reported on Friday that “Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel addresses a gathering of over 400 people from over 30 countries participating in the Nuestra América Convoy in solidarity with Cuba.”

Luis De Jesus, a correspondent for the Singham Network-linked BreakThrough News, also tweeted on Friday about Diaz-Canel and the convoy, stating that it “includes a flotilla of ships that in the coming days will arrive at the port of Havana with humanitarian aid.”

PSL also tweeted repeatedly about the Cuba convoy. “LIVE FROM HAVANA: The Let Cuba Live brigade is joining with hundreds of others from more than 30 countries in a massive display of solidarity with the Cuban people,” the PSL proclaimed. “As Trump threatens and strangles the Cuban people with inhumane economic and fuel blockades, the people of the world are bringing urgently-needed humanitarian aid to demonstrate that Cuba is not alone!”

Congressional Republicans have long called for investigations into the Singham network, its links to the CCP, its leadership in nationwide leftwing protests, and its role in anti-Israel encampments, vandalism, and violence on campus. The GOP — especially then-Senator Marco Rubio — has for years asked the DOJ to look into possible Foreign Agents Registration Act violations and has called upon the Treasury Department and IRS to consider revoking the tax-exempt status for Singham’s network of non-profits.

The GOP-led House Oversight Committee also voted this year to subpoena Singham for information about this sprawling activist network. It is still unknown whether that subpoena was issued or served on Singham.