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October 3, 2002.
Fox: New ambassador to Cuba will 'faithfully' represent Mexico
MEXICO CITY, 2 (AP) - Longtime diplomat Roberta Lajous will faithfully
represent Mexico as the country's new ambassador to Cuba, President Vicente Fox
said Wednesday.
Fox's comment appeared to be a reference to Lajous' predecessor, Ricardo
Pascoe, who was asked to step down after he sparred with Foreign Secretary Jorge
Castaneda over Mexico-Cuba relations.
Pascoe largely supported Havana's communist government, while Castaneda has
squabbled with Cuban officials, including President Fidel Castro.
The standoff began when Pascoe canceled Mexican Independence Day
celebrations in Havana after Castaneda's office refused to pay for the
festivities.
Lajous began her diplomatic career in 1980 and has served as Mexico's
ambassador to Austria as well as the country's alternate representative before
the United.
In a statement released by his office, Fox said he believed Lajous'
nomination would be confirmed by the Senate.
However, opposition lawmakers have criticized Fox's policy toward Cuba, a
longtime ally of Mexico. Many were angered that Fox prodded Castro to leave a
major summit in Mexico on March 21 — a day before U.S. President George W.
Bush was to arrive.
In the statement, Fox said Lajous and her staff would "respond
faithfully to the directives" of the Mexican government. He added that ties
between the two countries would remain the same.
"Mexico values its historical relationship with Cuba, and the
government reiterates that relations are normal," the statement said.
Brazil and Italy advance, but Cuba booted from World Volleyball
Championship
By VICENTE PANETTA, Associated Press Writer
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, 1 (AP)- Hristo Zlatanov powered Italy to a 3-0
victory over Canada at the mens' World Volleyball Championships on Tuesday as
the Europeans bounced back from one first-round upset to advance.
Brazil also managed to qualify, despite its own upset a day earlier at the
hands of a strong American squad. However, the first round saw Cuba packing its
bags to leave, despite its history as a top contender.
Yugoslavia, the gold medalists at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, breezed
unbeaten into the second round.
Brazil joined the upstart United States in advancing to the quarterfinals,
along with the Netherlands, Greece, France, Bulgaria, Argentina, Portugal and
Poland.
Russia, one of the biggest pre-tournament favorites, barely squeaked into
the second round, propelled by a 3-0 victory over Tunisia on Tuesday. The win
gave Russia a third-place berth, despite a mediocre performance earlier in the
opening round.
Japan, China and the Czech Republic also advanced alongside Russia on the
basis of best third-place finishers.
Cuba, long a powerhouse but still recoiling from last year's defections of
four star players, didn't survive after failing to capitalize on a youthful team
roster.
Although Cuba has been rebuilding, coach Eliseo Ramos did little to hide his
disappointment with his young charges.
"We have improved a little, but not enough," said a dejected
Ramos. "There were players who didn't pull their weight."
Also leaving after the first round were newcomers Kazakhstan, along with
Venezuela, Canada, Croatia, Tunisia and Egypt.
That leaves 16 of the 24 nations left in the fight to reach the Oct. 13
final.
In the second round Oct. 4-6, Argentina, Italy, Bulgaria and Japan will
clash in Buenos Aires. Poland, Russia, Portugal and Spain will meet in Cordoba.
The central city of Santa Fe will host France, the Netherlands, Brazil and
the Czech Republic. And in Salta, the Americans will meet Yugoslavia, Greece and
China.
In Group A, Argentina beat Portugal 3-1 to lead the pack into the second
round. After dropping the first set to Portugal 25-21, the Argentines went on a
curious roll to finish 25-22, 25-22, 25-22.
Portugal took second place in Group A and China, third place.
In Group B, the Italian squad, winner of an unprecedented three world
championships, unexpectedly lost to Poland 3-2 Monday in the first round, but
managed to return to its winning ways Tuesday night.
Zlatanov scored 21 points as Italy shattered Canada's defenses 25-20, 26-24,
25-17 and assured the Italians' survival. "For Italy, losing is not
habit-forming. We are used to winning," said the burly Zlatanov after the
clash.
In Group C, unbeaten France defeated Bulgaria in an electrifying clash of
more than two hours that came close to hand-to-hand combat save for the net
separating the two sides.
The French ultimately won 25-23, 22-25, 25-22, 17-25, 17-15 — never
mind that both France and Bulgaria were already assured of advancing. France led
Group C, followed by Bulgaria, with Russia third.
In Group D, Yugoslavia had no peer as it won all three of its preliminary
matches to top the pool, capping a stellar first round with a 25-21, 25-15,
25-20 thrashing of Japan.
Spain finished second in the group after downing Kazakhstan 3-1 in 25-22,
25-16, 25-21 and 25-21. Meanwhile, Japan advanced in third place.
In Group E, the United States defeated Venezuela 3-0 to finish the opening
round unbeaten. The Americans won 26-24, 25-18, 33-31 and will now face the
unbeaten Yugoslavs in Salta.
"They key to our victory was good communication," said William
Brady, one of the American standouts. "We're ready to take on anybody."
Brazil downed Egypt 3-0 in 25-14, 25-20, 25-21 to finish second in Group E
and qualify. Andre Nascimento and Giovani had 12 points each for the Brazilian
victory in Group E.
But laggards Venezuela and Egypt failed to advance from the group.
In Group F, the Netherlands defeated Cuba 3-1 in 25-18, 25-17, 16-25, 25-21.
In the same group, the Czech Republic advanced by defeating Greece 3-1 in sets
of 22-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-17, 15-10.
In other late matches, Poland downed Croatia 3-0 by 25-21-25-18, 25-18.
China was a 3-1 winner over Australia in 25-19, 25-20, 23-25, 25-21 and Russia
toppled Tunisia 3-0 in 25-19, 25-13, 25-23. | 
