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<font size=3>cubanmission.com <br><br>
<b>Declaration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba<br>
<br>
</b>On Monday January 4, press reports indicated that as from that day,
the US Transport Security Administration was applying additional security
measures, at every airport in the world, to any passenger carrying a
passport from the countries the State Department has listed as “sponsors
of international terrorism.” Among the countries unfairly and arbitrarily
included in that list are Cuba, Iran, Syria and Sudan as well as other
countries “of interest” such as: Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon,
Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen. The measures
also apply to any person making a stopover in any of these 14
nations.<br>
<br>
It has been reported that the decision to impose these new measures was
adopted after an attempted terrorist action against an American Northwest
Airlines aircraft aimed for Detroit city last December 25.<br>
<br>
According to statements from unidentified American officials ran by the
press, the passengers that qualify in these categories will be subjected
to body search and their hand luggage will be thoroughly checked using
sophisticated explosive-detection techniques or imaging scanners. <br>
<br>
In the evening of January 5, after a meeting with members of his National
Security staff, President Barack Obama confirmed the adoption of the
abovementioned regulations, in effect since the previous day, affecting
“passengers traveling to the United States from or through the nations in
our list of states sponsors of terrorism or other countries of
interest.”<br>
<br>
That same evening, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba and its
Interests Section in Washington presented a Note of protest to the US
Interests Section in Havana and the State Department, respectively.<br>
<br>
In the Note, the MINREX categorically rebuffs this new hostile action by
the US administration arising from the unjustified inclusion of Cuba in
the so-called list of ‘States sponsors of terrorism’ for purely political
reasons and with the single purpose of justifying the blockade policy
that the international community has so overwhelmingly condemned.<br>
<br>
The Note contests the elaboration of such lists and underlines facts that
prove Cuba’s impeccable record in the fight on terrorism, an evil of
which it has historically been the victim. It also reaffirms that the
arguments used by the US administration to justify our country’s
inclusion in its list of “States sponsors of terrorism” are absolutely
baseless, and demands its immediate removal from that arbitrary
list.<br>
<br>
That same day, in response to an AFP question on the MINREX Note of
protest, a State Department spokesman said that “Cuba is a country that
supports terrorist activities, therefore, its citizens and travelers in
air transit should be subjected to additional controls for security
reasons.”<br>
<br>
Following the public announcement of this new measure, columnists of
major US newspapers like the Washington Post have referred to Cuba’s
designation as a “terrorist State” as something “ridiculous” and
“unwarranted,” and have recalled that our country poses no threat to the
security of the United States, adding that looking for terrorists in
flights coming from Cuba “is a waste of time.”<br>
<br>
Again on January 5, 2010, State Department spokesman Philip Crowley
stated that Cuba’s designation as a “State sponsor of terrorism” is
“well-earned.” Next day, January 6, another spokesman repeated to AFP the
worn out pretexts that supposedly justify keeping Cuba in the terrorist
list.<br>
<br>
As one more element of its policy of hostility and its propaganda
campaigns aimed at discrediting the Revolution, in 1982, long before the
attacks on the Twin Towers in New York City, the Ronald Reagan
administration unjustly included Cuba in the annual State Department list
of “States sponsors of international terrorism.”<br>
<br>
The insertion of Cuba in that list led to the implementation of new
economic sanctions that included freezing financial transactions,
preventing technology transfer and executing restrictive and isolationist
actions against the country and its citizens. These sanctions would
be added to the already Draconian regulations derived from the economic,
commercial and financial blockade imposed since the beginning of the
Revolution.<br>
<br>
Every year, the US administration has kept Cuba on that list resorting to
different pretexts, all of them unsustainable, while unable to offer any
evidence of our country’s involvement in any terrorist action.<br>
<br>
On April 30, 2009, Obama’s administration ratified the absurd inclusion
of Cuba in that list while insisting that “the Cuban government continues
to provide save haven to various terrorists,” that “members of ETA, the
FARC and the ELN have remained in Cuba during 2008” and that “it
continues to allow some US fugitives to have legal residence in Cuba.”
This was strongly denied by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and motivated
a <i>Reflection</i> by comrade Fidel challenging the United States to
discuss the issue.<br>
<br>
Cuba has revealed the past sufficient information to prove the falsity of
such pretexts and their manipulative nature. This was also extensively
described in the Declaration of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs entitled
“Cuba has nothing to hide and nothing to be ashamed of,” published on May
2, 2003.<br>
<br>
The presence of various exiled members of the Basque organization ETA was
not initiated by Cuba; it originated in a request from the Spanish
governments concerned with the issue, with which an agreement was
reached, more than one-fourth of a century ago, allowing a small group of
members of that organization to travel to Cuba. Our country then
established the strict rule that if any member of that group ever left
the country they would be unable to return to Cuban territory. <br>
<br>
The members of ETA living in Cuba have never used our territory to
conduct actions of that organization against Spain or any other country.
Cuba has scrupulously abided by that agreement. The presence of ETA
members in Cuba is a bilateral issue discussed with the Spanish
government in various contacts. The US administration has no right or
authority to interfere in these affairs which do not involve or affect in
any way its national security or that of any other country.<br>
<br>
As to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National
Liberation Army (ELN) of Colombia, it is widely known that, at a certain
point, both the Colombian government and these guerrilla forces converged
in asking Cuba to participate in the peace process. In that framework,
Cuba has been a member of the Group of Countries Facilitators of the
dialogue and of the Group of Friendly Countries to the Peace Talks and
has hosted several rounds of negotiations.<br>
<br>
The transparent position of the Cuban government and its contribution to
the peace process has been publicly recognized not only by the FARC and
the ELN but also by the United Nations and the Colombian government.<br>
<br>
As to the presence in Cuba of fugitives of the US justice, it would be
worthwhile repeating that no terrorist from any country has ever found
save haven or residence in our territory. Cuba has legitimately offered
protection and political asylum to some American civil right
fighters.<br>
<br>
Also living in Cuba are other American citizens who have broken the law,
mainly aircraft hijackers. These people were tried in court and severely
punished and after serving their sentences requested to remain in the
country. It was the Cuban government that adopted the necessary measures
that during Carter’s government definitely put an end to plane
hijackings, a scourge that had originated in the United States.<br>
<br>
In contrast, since the triumph of the Revolution the US administration
has welcomed to its territory hundreds of criminals, murderers and
terrorists, ignoring the formal requests for their return filed by the
Cuban government in every case, in accordance with the Extradition
Accords that were then in effect. Many of these individuals still walk
free and undisturbed the streets of that country, even when they have
been involved in other terrorist actions against citizens and interests
of the United States, Cuba and other nations. The most notorious and
appalling case was the blasting of a Cubana Airlines passengers’ plane on
October 6, 1976, that took the lives of 73 people; this was the first
terrorist action against a commercial airliner in mid flight in the
Western Hemisphere. The authors --Orlando Bosch Avila and Luis Posada
Carriles-- have lived and still live unpunished in Miami. The former
received a presidential pardon from George H.W.Bush while the latter
awaits a protracted trial under charges of deceit and obstruction of
justice in a migratory case but not for international terrorism as his
actions warrant.<br>
<br>
Those same State Department reports that designate Cuba as a “State
sponsor of terrorism” have been unable to overlook some of these truths.
<br>
<br>
Cuba refuses to accept the illegitimate mechanism used by the US
administration to take upon itself the right of certifying the behavior
of other nations with respect to terrorism and to issue politically
motivated, discriminatory and selective lists while assuming a
double-standard position and failing to take to trial the confessed
culprits of horrible terrorist actions against Cuba who are instead
allowed to go free.<br>
<br>
An example of this is provided by our Five Heroes -- Gerardo, Fernando,
Ramón, Antonio and Renéwho are serving arbitrary and unfair sentences in
American prisons for protecting Cuba, --3478 of whose citizens were
killed and 2099 maimed by terrorist actions-- and also for defending the
integrity of citizens from the United States and other countries. <br>
<br>
Cuba has always behaved in an exemplary manner in the fight on
terrorism:<br>
<br>
- Cuba condemns every act
of terrorism, in all forms and manifestations;<br>
- The Cuban territory has
never been used nor will it ever be used to arrange, finance or implement
terrorist actions against any other country, including the United
States;<br>
- Cuba is a Party to the
13 international conventions on terrorism and it strictly observes the
obligations set forth in UN Security Council Resolutions 1267, 1373 and
1540 on this matter;<br>
- Cuba does not have, nor
does it intend to have, any kind of weapon of mass destruction and it
abides by its obligations stemming from the international instruments it
has signed related to nuclear, chemical and biological weapons;<br>
- The National Assembly
of People’s Power of the Republic of Cuba adopted on December 20, 2001,
the Act 93 ‘Against Terrorist Actions,’ defining every act of
international terrorism as a serious crimes and establishing very severe
sentences;<br>
- Additionally, Cuba has
adopted measures to prevent and suppress every act of terrorism and every
action related to them, including financing terrorism. Likewise, it has
increased surveillance along its borders and promoted actions to thwart
the trafficking of weapons and to intensify juridical cooperation with
other countries. To this end, it has signed 35 agreements for juridical
assistance and repeatedly expressed its continued willingness to
cooperate with very State in this area;<br>
- In this spirit, Cuba
has cooperated, even actively, with the US administration. On three
occasions, --November 2001, December 2001 and March 2002-- Cuba proposed
to the US authorities a draft program of bilateral cooperation to combat
terrorism; and on July 2009, Cuba reiterated its willingness to cooperate
in this area;<br>
- On various occasions,
the Cuban authorities have let the US administration know of its
willingness to exchange information on plans to carry out attacks and/or
terrorist actions on targets located in either one of the two countries.
It is also known that in 1984 Cuba alerted on a plan to attempt against
the life of President Ronald Reagan which led to the neutralization of
those involved by the US authorities. In 1998, information was
transferred to the William F.Clinton administration on plans to blow up
planes from Cuban airlines or from other countries traveling to
Cuba;<br>
- Likewise, the Cuban
authorities have provided the US government with plenty of information on
terrorist actions carried out against Cuba. In 1997, 1998, 2005 and 2006,
Cuba handed over to the FBI numerous evidence on a string of bombs set up
in various Cuban tourist resorts, and even gave them access to those
responsible for such actions detained in Cuba and to some witnesses;<br>
- It should not be
forgotten that Cuba was one of the first countries to publicly condemn
the criminal terrorist attacks of 9/11-2001 in the United States; that it
expressed its willingness to provide medical and humanitarian assistance
to the victims and that it immediately opened its air space and airports
to passenger planes flying towards American territory. Despite the
numerous terrorist actions against Cuba originated in the US territory,
our country has observed a clean and flawless conduct with regards to any
event that could affect US citizens because Cuba is a nation guided by
political principles and ethical standards.<br>
<br>
The government of Cuba, loyal to its honor and dignity, condemns the
arbitrary inclusion of Cuba in the list of 14 countries whose citizens
will be the subject of new restrictive measures determined by the US
Administration.<br>
<br>
The government of Cuba also demands the immediate removal of Cuba from
the list of “States sponsors of international terrorism,” since it is an
unfair, arbitrary and politically motivated designation that contradicts
the exemplary conduct of our country in the struggle against terrorism
and calls into question the seriousness of the United States in the fight
against that scourge.<br>
<br>
Similarly, it urges the US administration to act firmly and without
double standards, --as an expression of its commitment to the
antiterrorist struggle-- against those that have carried out terrorist
actions on Cuba from the US territory; and to free the Five Heroes who
are Cuban antiterrorists unjustly incarcerated in that country.<br>
<br>
Havana, January 7, 2010<br>
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba <br><br>
<br><br>
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