Reported Attempt to Sabotage Cuba’s Access to Petrol Reserves

Today in Havana, sources reported that the ultra right-wing U.S. lawmaker, lleana Ros-Lehtinen, is promoting a bill that would impose sanctions on companies and individuals that help Cuba develop its oil industry.

Under the pretext of protecting Caribbean coral reefs, lleana Ros-Lehtinen, head of the House of Representatives Foreign Relations Committee, intends to stop the exploration of oil reserves and suppress Cuba’s socioeconomic development.

Panelists appearing on the Cuban television program “Mesa Redonda” (Round Table) noted that this was just another example of the blockade against Cuba — an action that is meant to prevent Cuba from developing its resources and cause suffering among the people in the hope that Cubans will rise up against their government.

For the third time, Ros-Lehtinen will present a bill before the U.S. House of Representatives intended to protect coral reefs in the Caribbean and, conveniently, sanction any business or individual that helps Cuba develop its oil industry.

The Cuban territory in the Gulf of Mexico is divided into 59 blocks. Many of them are contracted by companies like Repsol, PDVSA (Venezuela), and PetroVietnam, all of which are ready to drill and are waiting for the Scarabeo 9 platform, an offshore drilling rig, to become available.

The panelists also noted that this platform, capable of operating in depths of up to 3,060 meters, was constructed in China, according to Norwegian standards, which means there is safety equipment ready to seal off a well in case of an accident.

In response to U.S. environmental concerns, the panel specialists noted that these environmental safety standards are not even required in the United States.

Ros-Lehtinen is the daughter of a supporter of the dictator Fulgencio Batista, who repressed the Cuban public until the triumph of the revolution in 1959. To this day, she continues to be in favor of every initiative against Cuba.