Trump comments spark speculation about his intentions towards Cuba

Donald Trump has sparked more speculation over his intentions towards Cuba, telling reporters that he'll be the US president who finally intervenes in the Caribbean nation.

"Other presidents have looked at this for 50, 60 years," Trump said on Thursday, "And it looks like I'll be the one that does it."

Trump didn't clarify his statement. Nor did he answer questions about a US aircraft carrier having reportedly entered the southern Caribbean on Wednesday.

The comments came one day after US prosecutors indicted Cuba's former president Raul Castro on criminal charges related to the downing of two small planes in 1996. Cuba's President Miguel Díaz-Canel condemned the move as a political stunt intended to justify what he called the "folly of military aggression against Cuba."

Trump has been threatening military action against Cuba since US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in January. The US then imposed a blockade on Cuba that choked off fuel supplies, leading to blackouts, food shortages and economic collapse across the island.

Trump has also pledged to conduct a "friendly takeover" of the island if its leadership doesn't open its economy to American investment and kick out US adversaries.