[News] 'We will never negotiate under pressure', ex-Cuba envoy to US says

[Anti-Imperialist News]

middleeastmonitor.com
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230409-we-will-never-negotiate-under-pressure-ex-cuba-envoy-to-us-says/>
'We will never negotiate under pressure', ex-Cuba envoy to US says
Dr Daud Abdulla - April 9, 2023
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[image: image.png]

Jose Ramon Cabañas Rodriguez served in the Cuban diplomatic service for 37
years. In 2015 he became his country's first ambassador to the United
States in 50 years. During his long and distinguished career, Cabañas was
involved in some of the most difficult diplomatic challenges Cuba faced in
recent decades. He played a key role in securing the release of the Miami
Five from incarceration in the US. Now back in Havana, Jose is director of
the Research Centre for International Policy (CIPI). We met recently while
he was attending *MEMO's *conference
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230205-international-perspectives-on-apartheid-and-decolonization-in-palestine/>on
decolonisation and apartheid in Palestine.

[image: Jose Ramon Cabañas Rodriguez, former envoy to the US speaks at a
MEMO conference held in London on 4 February 2023 on International
perspectives on apartheid and decolonisation in Palestine [Middle East
Monitor]]

Jose Ramon Cabañas Rodriguez, former envoy to the US speaks at a MEMO
conference held in London on 4 February 2023 on International perspectives
on apartheid and decolonisation in Palestine [Middle East Monitor]
*Fundamentals *

I began our conversation by asking him about the fundamentals of Cuban
foreign policy, its constants and its variables. "Some people may think we
are boring and almost predictable," he says. They know what to expect in
almost any scenario. The first principle of that policy is "to defend our
sovereignty at any cost."

Naturally, Cuba affirms the efficacy of diplomacy. Throughout the past 64
years, Cuba's foreign policy has been driven by the principles of
reciprocity and mutual respect between nations. All these are enshrined in
the country's new constitution, which was adopted in 2019 and emphasises
that "we will never negotiate under pressure."

Revolutionary leaders from José Martí to Fidel Castro have always
encouraged internationalism. "We follow a course of solidarity both from a
political and cultural point of view. That has been seen in our role in
Africa. We are returning to Africa what Africa gave to us. It is our
heritage and it gave us a lot."

Cabañas continues: "We are open to any culture and assist others; we sent
medical doctors
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200917-beyond-borders-international-map-of-cuban-medical-cooperation/>
all over the world." He asserts that Cuba's revolutionary foreign policy
has been successful because it has resolutely adhered to these guiding
principles. "That's why we have gained respect in multilateral spaces;
because we have been consistent for many years."
*Palestine *

Given that Cuba played a pivotal role in several decolonisation struggles
in Africa, in which Cabañas was personally involved, I naturally wanted to
have a perspective from Havana on the Zionist colonisation of Palestine.

"We denounce the pressure and daily violence inflicted on the Palestinian
people. The systematic denial of their basic rights is not an abstract
matter. So why is Israel not classified on the list of terrorist states?"

Through its membership of the UN Palestinian Rights Committee, Cuba offers
diplomatic support and solidarity. The Palestinian flag features
prominently in all national parades and events. "Cuba has always been on
the side of the Palestinian people and we help in accordance with our
capability. Hence, hundreds of Palestinian students are trained in Cuban
universities."

Since 2006, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been subjected to an
Israeli blockade
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20180810-what-everyone-should-know-about-israels-siege-of-the-gaza-strip/>.
Their fate bears stark semblances to the 64-year-old US blockade of Cuba.
How did the Cubans manage to survive this long without conceding any
political ground?

Jose says: "The first lesson is unity and resilience is the only way. If
you are not ready to fight until the end you will not survive. You will get
no respect and solidarity. We have received a lot of support; direct
economic support, as well as huge moral support."

When faced with a blockade, the type of which Gaza faces, he adds, "you
must look for alternatives and expand your international relations."
*The US blockade*

"It may seem like a contradiction, but the solidarity movement towards Cuba
in the US is among the largest. Remember that the blockade against Cuba
doesn't have the support of the majority of the American people. Any poll
will show this. The US is isolated in the UN on this policy with the
exception of Israel and a few Pacific countries."

There are, besides, other parallels with the situation in Gaza.* "*What
they call embargo and we call blockade is a comprehensive system of not
only legal decisions but also political, economic, security and military
decisions. All these are enforced while the Americans are still occupying
part of our land in Guantanamo. We are, therefore, speaking about a state
policy toward Cuba that has been reviewed and updated for more than 60
years."

The first document signed by American President Kennedy stated that Cuba
has a special relationship with the Soviet Union and the People's Republic
of China and they are both US enemies, Washington should not allow them to
gain a foothold in the region. "Well, the Soviet Union doesn't exist
anymore and China is the largest trading partner of the US. So why are we
under blockade? It's like a moving target."

*READ:* *Hamas delegation visits Cuba Ambassador to Lebanon*
<https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20230225-hamas-delegation-visits-cuba-ambassador-to-lebanon/?relatedposts_hit=1&relatedposts_origin=626862&relatedposts_position=1>

The case of the 1996 Helms-Burton Act is both revealing and significant.
Cabañas recalled how the US used the argument of compensation after the
nationalisation process in Cuba. "But we were unable to make compensations
to the Americans simply because they cancelled our sugar quota in their
market. In fact, we compensated everyone else; the UK, France and others."

For decades the US has made no secret of the fact that its aim is to carry
out regime change in Cuba. It has never hesitated to move the goalpost to
accomplish this end. "Under Clinton, many political forces and politicians
in the US advocated a track two approach, meaning a people-to-people
dialogue; but they quickly changed this because it was working to the
advantage of Cuba." How did this happen?

When American citizens visited Cuba, they found a situation completely
different from what they were led to believe. First, they were welcomed and
they saw no enemies. "So they began to ask, what is the problem? [The
Cubans] are not burning American flags."

Although Barack Obama visited Cuba in 2016, the first such trip by a
sitting American president since 1928, US official policy remained
unchanged. "For his administration, it was a question of do we go about
regime change by blockade and military force or through the friendly hug."
*Caribbean brotherhood*

Before concluding my conversation with Dr Cabañas, there were two other
matters I wanted to touch on; the first was about Cuba's relationship with
its Caribbean neighbours. He explained: "The support from the Caribbean
brotherhood has been a key element in our fight against the blockade. Some
call the Caribbean the immediate neighbourhood of Cuba, I say it is the
immediate brotherhood of Cuba, and this is no exaggeration. It is the most
consistent support we have had, regardless of who is in government – left,
center or right. It's a cultural and economic stance."

There are, naturally, problems in the region related to health,
transportation, integration of trade and education. While he was in
Washington, Cabañas recalled how Caribbean diplomats were often warned not
to get too close to Cuba as it would damage their tourist industry. Their
response was always clear-cut; they demanded an end to the blockade as it
would benefit them economically. "On the whole, our relationship with our
Caribbean brothers is reciprocal and exceptional. When the Covid pandemic
struck in 2019, our doctors and medical teams were deployed in the islands
long before the British, even though the English-speaking islands are part
of the British Commonwealth. Episodes like these prove that it is
impossible to detach Cuba from the region."
*The Miami Five*

Finally, after so many years in the diplomatic service, what would you say
was the most difficult and challenging situation you faced as a Cuban
diplomat. "Surely the most sensitive experience was my personal role in
efforts to free the Miami Five – Cubans who were jailed in the US in 1998
for trying to prevent terrorist attacks against their country. They were
convicted in 2000-2001, and it seemed that at least three of them would
spend the rest of their lives in prison. In Cuba, they were, and remain,
national heroes. We visited them and for several years fought hard legal
battles in different US courts for their release."

"That experience of going to high security prisons in the US to talk to
these Cubans helped me to understand how insane their conviction was – that
of being foreign agents and conspiring to commit murder. Contrary to media
reports, there was no mention of espionage in the courts."

"Amazingly, every time we visited them, they were confident they would be
free at some point. Fidel himself said they will be back, and they were.
The whole experience was for me a very special one; and although it was an
extremely tense and difficult period, it ultimately ended in happiness for
the Cuban people with their freedom and return to Havana."
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