One day after the United States brought criminal charges against former Cuban leader Raul Castro over the 1996 shooting down of two civilian aircraft, President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio portrayed Cuba as both a growing national security threat tied to China and Russia and a candidate for a negotiated political transition.

The comments came amid renewed friction between Washington and Beijing over Cuba after China criticised the US charges against Castro and accused Washington of escalating pressure on Havana.

“The US side should stop brandishing the sanctions stick and the judicial stick against Cuba and stop threatening force at every turn,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Thursday.

“China firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and national dignity and opposes external interference.”

On Thursday, Rubio repeatedly framed Cuba as a national security concern for the United States, citing the island’s ties to Russia and China as well as the risk of instability near Florida.

“Cuba not only has weapons that they’ve acquired from Russia and China over the years, but they also host Russian and Chinese intelligence presence in their country, not far from where we’re standing right now,” Rubio said during remarks in Homestead, south of Miami.