In an unusual attempt to get President Trump’s ear, the grandson of Cuban leader Raúl Castro tapped a wealthy Havana entrepreneur to try to personally deliver a letter to the White House last week outside of regular diplomatic channels, said a U.S. official and former U.S. official.
The letter was formatted similarly to a diplomatic note and carried an official Cuban seal, the current U.S. official said. The attempted back-channel message to Trump proposed economic and investment agreements as well as sanctions relief, and also warned that the Cuban regime was preparing for a U.S. incursion, the U.S. official said.
But the courier—Roberto Carlos Chamizo González, 37 years old, a Cuban businessman involved in private high-end auto rentals and luxury tourism—was sent back to Havana from Miami after a Customs and Border Protection agent stopped him at the airport, obtaining the letter and ending the effort, the U.S. official said.
The White House didn’t answer questions about whether it had received the letter, referring to the president’s recent comments on Cuba. It couldn’t be determined why the courier was stopped at the airport.
The letter was an extraordinary attempt to jump-start discussions with the Trump administration by Raúl Rodriguez Castro, 41, the grandson and chief aide of Raúl Castro, as the island struggles with its worst economic crisis in decades.
Cuba’s government, whose most important figure is 94-year-old former President Raúl Castro, appeared to try to reach Trump directly by going around Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The son of Cuban immigrants, Rubio has long pushed Washington to increase pressure on Havana’s Communist government and force political change on the island.
Trump might be more amenable to cutting an economic deal with Cuba while leaving most of the regime in place, as he did in Venezuela, an outcome that would be anathema to many Cuban-Americans, Cuba-focused political analysts say.
“The Cubans appear to be attempting to circumvent Rubio and get a clear message directly to Trump,” said Peter Kornbluh, co-author of “Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations Between Washington and Havana.” “This effort suggests that they no longer trust Rubio to be a dispassionate interlocutor and want to appeal directly to the president to resolve the escalating crisis.”
The State Department referred questions to the White House. “Cuba will be next,” Trump said earlier this month. “Cuba is a failing country and we will be there to help them out.”
Trump could face resistance from hard-line Cuban-American lawmakers and voters who have enthusiastically backed him if the negotiations don’t result in regime change.
“This regime must disappear,” said Rep. Mario Diaz Balart, (R – Fla).
Rodriguez Castro, known as the Crab, because he was born with six fingers on one hand, has emerged as an intermediary in negotiations between the two countries. He has been Raúl Castro’s bodyguard for years, and still appears besides the Cuban leader during his rare public appearances.
Cuba is on the edge of a humanitarian disaster after decades of government mismanagement and U.S. sanctions. Trump has threatened to take over the island and has imposed an almost total oil blockade, bringing most economic activity to a halt. The crisis was compounded by the loss of a Cuban ally in Venezuela, when the U.S. military deposed Nicolás Maduro in January.
In recent weeks, U.S. officials have been holding discussions with Cuban officials, including figures in Raúl Castro’s inner circle. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said he refuses to negotiate over Cuba’s political system.
The existence of Rodriguez Castro’s letter was first reported by Radio y TV Marti, a U.S. government-run network that broadcasts news and information to Cuba. It was independently confirmed by The Wall Street Journal, which wasn’t able to verify the exact contents of the letter.
In picking Chamizo as an emissary, Rodriguez Castro chose a friend who is also a business partner, the U.S. official said. The entrepreneur runs a luxury car service and a country resort less than 20 miles from Havana, where an overnight stay at its top of the line villa goes for $580, according to his LinkedIn account, Facebook post and business website.
“To try and sidestep Rubio while he is secretary of state is downright foolish and bound to backfire,” said Rick Herrero, the executive director of the Cuba Study Group, a Washington-based policy and advocacy group. “It’s worse to go with an unknown with no personal relationship to the president, which makes it look more foolish.”
Write to José de Córdoba at jose.decordoba@wsj.com and Vera Bergengruen at vera.bergengruen@wsj.com