US Army Reserve weighs units for possible Southern Command mission

An internal US Army message has asked Army Reserve commands to assess whether they can supply US Southern Command with police, medical and other support formations within the next four months, according to reporting by CBS News.

The document, which does not mention Cuba, seeks feedback from subordinate commands on the possible availability of six types of formations that would fall under Southern Command's authority. The units would "possibly [be] needed in 90-120 days," and commands were directed to respond to Army Reserve headquarters by September 25.

The requested formations include a combat sustainment support battalion, which coordinates logistics such as transportation, maintenance, fuel and supply; an engineer battalion; and an expeditionary sustainment command that would oversee logistics across a theater of operations.

The list also includes a medical brigade to command and coordinate medical units, a forward resuscitative and surgical detachment to provide emergency surgery and trauma care closer to US forces, and a military police brigade, whose units typically handle security, detention and other law enforcement missions.

The message does not indicate that any units have received deployment orders. It also does not specify how many troops would be needed, where forces could be sent, or what operation they would support. The request is for continued military planning aimed at Cuba, multiple US officials told CBS News.

A Southern Command spokesperson said the command does not disclose details or comment on US operational movements or potential deployment timelines because of operational security concerns. The spokesperson added that Southern Command continuously coordinates with the Joint Force to assess a range of potential requirements across its area of responsibility in support of assigned missions.

Earlier this year, US forces conducted reconnaissance operations on the seafloor and maritime approaches around Cuba, and US airpower components were placed on heightened readiness and directed to pre-stage personnel for possible deployment. Those plans did not materialise.

The planning comes as the Trump administration applies intense economic pressure on Cuba and urges political reforms. Cuba's situation shifted sharply in January when US commandos captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the island's top ally, and took him to New York to face drug charges. Venezuela has since cut off fuel exports to Cuba, while interim President Delcy Rodríguez met Trump this week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

The administration has imposed economic sanctions and what amounts to a fuel blockade, worsening blackouts and shortages of basic goods. Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío said that even when the power grid works, fuel restrictions leave most people with electricity for only a few hours a day. Cuba has rolled out more than 170 proposals to give the private sector freer rein and loosen import rules, but De Cossío said the measures cannot succeed while the US is "starving or asphyxiating the people of Cuba into submission." Talks between Washington and Havana have effectively stalled, he added, flagging what he described as contradictions in Trump's UN speech.

Ending more than 67 years of one-party rule in Cuba is a priority for Trump and the Republican Party, though some analysts argue that could change if Democrats win control of the House and Senate in November's midterm elections.