Cuban foreign minister warns US on 'dangerous path' that could lead to 'bloodbath in Cuba'

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2. Despite the many economic hardships the Cuban people have suffered as the result of a decades-long embargo,

they passionately want to maintain their independence as a nation. The Cuban people do not want a return to the rampant corruption and economic inequalities of the pre-Castro days, when Cuba was merely a vassal state of the U.S., completely dominated by American corporate interests. They may not have much, but what they have is theirs, and they're a proud people. Like many Cubans like to say, "Nuestro vino es amargo, pero es nuestro vino" (Our wine is bitter, but it is our wine).

The only ones who want a return to "the good old days" are a dwindling number of Cuban-Americans in Miami, people who fled the island decades ago, and still cling to the fantasy they can go back in time, and the many corporate interests who had all their holdings seized in 1960 when Castro nationalized all foreign-owned businesses and properties in Cuba. They don't want freedom and independence for the Cuban people, they see Cuba as an untapped resource and an opportunity for investment.