HAVANA (AP) — Cuba has had talks with the U.S. government, Cuban President Miguel Duaz-Canel said Friday, marking the first time the Caribbean country has confirmed widespread speculation about discussions with the Trump administration as it grapples with a severe energy crisis.

Duaz-Canel said the talks “were aimed at finding solutions through dialogue to the bilateral differences between our two nations. International factors facilitated these exchanges.” He did not elaborate on those factors, or provide any specifics about the talks, which U.S. President Donald Trump has alluded to in the past.

Cuba’s relations with the U.S. have been fraught for decades and punctuated by animosity, with the exception of a brief rapprochement during former President Barack Obama’s second term.

Asked for comment on Friday, the White House pointed to Trump’s public comments about discussions with Cuba that he said were being led by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and intended to press major changes in Cuban policies and governance.

Trump has suggested that top Cuban leaders would be smart to avoid the fate of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

That leader was ousted and arrested in a U.S. military operation in

January.

Shortly after Díaz-Canel spoke, two U.S. officials said that Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants and a longtime Cuba hawk, and top aides met at the end of February in the Caribbean with the grandson of retired Cuban leader Raúl Castro, who is believed to play an influential role in the government despite not holding an official post.