CUBA NEWS
January 7, 2003

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US says Cuba to blame for cancellation of immigration talks

WASHINGTON, 7 (AFP) - The United States said Cuban intransigence and not US opposition was to blame for the cancellation of a planned round of immigration talks this week.

The State Department said Washington was prepared to go ahead with the talks -- which the Cubans had proposed for Thursday -- but only if Havana would agree to address five areas of US concern in the immigration area.

"The United States is willing to reconsider the scheduling of the next round of migration talks when Cuba informs us that it agrees to a productive agenda, including a commitment to discuss these five issues," spokesman Richard Boucher said.

He identified the five issues as: Cuba's refusal to grant exit permits to qualified Cubans who want to come to the United States, its failure to arrange a new registration system for a visa lottery, the need for Cuba to provide a deep-water port for repatriation, restoring access to Cuban return migrants by US officials in Havana and Cuba's obligation to accept the return of its nationals deemed excludable by the United States.

"We have raised each of these issues in at least the last six sessions of the talks and Cuba has refused to discuss them substantively," Boucher told reporters.

"Consequently when the Cuban government proposed January 8th for the next round of migration talks, we determined that, given the Cuban government's expressed unwillingness to engage on these five most important issues, another round of talks at this point did not serve our interests," he said.

Late Tuesday, Cuba accused the United States of unilaterally cancelling the talks, calling the move "irresponsible" and the explanation "unrealistic and absurd."

The five US issues lack "the slightest significance to the advancement of the Migration Accords," the Cuban foreign ministry said in a statement.

"Clearly, in the imperial language of the US officials, 'dealing seriously' means that Cuba should be willing to make every unilateral concession needed and give in to every whim and demand of the US authorities," it said.

But it added that Havana has "never refused to discuss and analyze any issue brought up by US officials" during migration talks" and that it was "willing to seriously discuss ... all the issues mentioned by US authorities."

Thursday's cancelled talks were to have been part of immigration discussions that the two countries have held periodically since the Migration Accords were signed in 1994 to ensure "safe and orderly" immigration between the Cold War foes.

After the last round of talks in New York in June, the United States accused Cuba in September of failing to live up to its commitments under the accords by refusing to issue exit visas to more than 600 Cuban citizens that held US visas.

Cuba Says U.S. Suspends Migration Talks

HAVANA, 6 (AP) - Cuba announced late Tuesday that U.S. officials have suspended regular migration talks scheduled in Havana this week. In Washington, State Department spokesman Curtis Cooper said he had no information about the migration talks, including whether they had been suspended.

The talks, held every six months in alternating countries, are the highest-level discussions held between the two nations, which have been without diplomatic ties for more than four decades. The latest round was scheduled for Thursday.

But the Cuban Foreign Ministry said in a statement sent to international reporters that State Department officials had informed Havana on Monday the talks were impossible "until Cuban authorities show a true interest in dealing with very important issues for achieving orderly, legal and safe migration between the two countries."

Without specifying what issues the Americans were reportedly concerned about, the Cuban foreign ministry said they had nothing to do with migration accords the countries signed in 1994 and 1995.

The regular migration talks were set up by accords aimed at preventing a repeat of the mass exodus that saw tens of thousands of Cubans take to the sea in flimsy boats and rafts for the United States during the summer of 1994.

Cuba's announcement comes amid increasing concerns by U.S. officials about what they see as a joint effort by the leftist leaders of Cuba and Venezuela to nurture anti-American sentiment in Latin America with money, political indoctrination and training.

The Cuban statement blamed the reported suspension of the talks on election year politics, accusing the Bush administration of giving in to pressure by anti-Castro Cuban exiles in Florida.

Argentina enraged by US comments on Cuba policy

BUENOS AIRES, 7 (AFP) - Argentina has been angered by US criticism of its policy on Cuba and President Nestor Kirchner vowed to raise the dispute with President George W. Bush when they meet at an international summit next week.

The diplomatic temperature has risen following criticism of Argentine policy by US Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Roger Noriega.

Noreiga, the top US diplomat for the Americas, said Tuesday that the United States was "disappointed" with Buenos Aires' approach to Cuba and is veering to the left since Kirchner took office.

"There are particular incidents, instances where we have been disappointed with decisions by Argentine officials, for example, not to meet with dissidents in Cuba," Noriega told reporters Tuesday in New York following a speech to the Council of the Americas.

The senior US diplomat's remarks appeared to be aimed at a visit to Cuba in October by Argentine foreign minister Rafael Bielsa.

"We want Argentina to have a robust foreign policy and a principled foreign policy," Noriega said.

Cuban leader Fidel Castro (news - web sites) was given a red carpet welcome when he came to Buenos Aires in May for Kirchner's inauguration.

Buenos Aires' response to Noriega's remarks could set the ground for a tricky meeting between Kirchner and US President George W. Bush. The two leaders are due to meet on the sidelines of a summit of American leaders in Monterrey, Mexico on Tuesday.

Noriega said Washington would be sharing some "of our concerns" with the Argentines.

The summit brings together all countries from North and South America except the communist island.

Noreiga said Washington's stance reflected concern about Castro's engagement with certain south American states.

"(Castro) is increasingly active in the region and this is a great concern among Latin American leaders that I meet with because they understand that he is not committed to the democratic process," Noriega had said.

"He's (Castro) a broken-down -- the old dictator. He's fishing in troubled waters."

Noriega also lamented the warm relationship between Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Castro.

"Chavez doesn't consider himself the best friend of the US," he noted.

Both Buenos Aires and Caracas reacted angrily to Noriega's remarks.

Argentina's cabinet chief Alberto Fernandez said Wednesday that Noriega had been "downright impertinent" in his criticism of Argentina.

The spat prompted Argentina's Bielsa to register Buenos Aires' disappointment over Noriega's remarks with Washington's ambassador here, Lino Gutierrez, a career US diplomat who was born in Cuba.

Separately, Venezuelan vice president Jose Vicente Rangel was moved to comment that the United States had "sadly" often intervened in Latin American affairs.

Noriega's remarks came days after the United States announced it had expelled a Cuban diplomat from Washington and after Havana Tuesday accused the United States of cancelling a round of US-Cuban immigration talks.



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