Russian cargo plane Il-76 lands at Cuba military base amid tensions

A Russian cargo airplane usually used to switch navy gear landed at a navy airport in Havana on Sunday night, echoing flight patterns seen earlier than Nicolás Maduro’s seize in Venezuela.

The U.S.-sanctioned Ilyushin Il-76, operated by Russian state airline Aviacon Zitotrans, was tracked because it landed at San Antonio de los Baños airport, a Cuban navy set up about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of Havana, in keeping with public flight information.

Flight registration information exhibits the airplane stopped in St. Petersburg and Sochi, Russia; Mauritania, Africa; and the Dominican Republic. Any touchdown would require the approval of host governments, offering a window by which nations proceed to permit Russian navy aviation actions regardless of Western sanctions.

The identical airplane operated flights to Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba in late October 2025, as tensions between Washington and Caracas escalated. This transfer preceded U.S. navy motion in Venezuela that finally ended Maduro’s rule — a sequence that U.S. officers and analysts have since pointed to as a warning indicator when evaluating related Russian aviation actions within the area.

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A Russian navy Ilyushin Il-76 landed in Cuba on Sunday evening. (Delil SOULEIMAN/AFP through Getty Photos)

Now Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel is below growing strain from President Donald Trump, who has sharply intensified US coverage in direction of Havana in latest weeks.

On Thursday, Trump declared a nationwide emergency relating to Cuba, claiming that the Cuban authorities poses an “uncommon and extraordinary menace” to U.S. nationwide safety and overseas coverage pursuits. The administration additionally stated it would impose sanctions on any nation that sells or provides oil to Cuba with out U.S. approval.

Trump confirmed on Sunday that the US is in direct talks with Cuban officers.

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“Cuba is a failing nation. It has been that manner for a very long time, however now the nation not has Venezuela to maintain it afloat,” Trump informed reporters in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. “So we’re speaking to the folks of Cuba, the best folks in Cuba, to see what occurs. I believe we will make a take care of Cuba.”

Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have each expressed assist for political change in Havana, though the administration has not stated whether or not it would pursue that purpose via navy motion.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel is in President Trump’s crosshairs. (Pablo Porciuncula/AFP through Getty Photos)

The identical Russian airplane flew into Caracas earlier than Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was captured by US forces. (Federico Parra/AFP through Getty Photos)

Russian navy ties with Cuba have repeatedly raised considerations in Washington. Because the Soviet Union’s footprint on the island shrank after the Chilly Conflict, Moscow has steadily rebuilt protection and intelligence cooperation with Havana over the previous decade. U.S. officers have warned that renewed Russian exercise in Cuba may pose safety dangers close to the U.S. mainland.

The Il-76 is a heavy transport plane that may carry roughly 50 tons of cargo or as much as 200 males, a functionality that has come below scrutiny as a result of operator’s historical past. Aviacon Zitotrans has been sanctioned by the USA, Canada and Ukraine for supporting Russia’s protection sector.

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“Aviacon Zitotrans has shipped navy gear reminiscent of missiles, nuclear warheads and helicopter elements all over the world,” the US Treasury Division stated in January 2023, when it added the airline to its sanctions record.

It stays unclear what cargo the airplane was carrying on its most up-to-date flight. Throughout earlier operations in Venezuela, Russian state media and a Russian parliamentarian stated the identical plane delivered Pantsir-S1 short-range and Buk-M2E medium-range air protection programs to Caracas.