The US Always Wants More

Leader of the Cuban Revolution Fidel Castro expressed his opinion on the dialogue between the U.S. and Cuba:

"I don't trust the policy of the United States, nor have I had an exchange with them, but this does not mean ... a rejection of a peaceful solution to conflicts or the dangers of war. Protecting peace is everyone’s duty,” he wrote in a letter to the student federation.

Alexander Ionov, president of the Russian nongovernmental organization Anti-Globalization Movement, told Aktyalnye Kommentarii about the situation surrounding the active interest of the U.S. toward Cuba.

“During our recent talks, colleagues from Cuba expressed their concerns about the U.S. initiative and the developing dialogue between Havana and Washington. It is a well-known fact that every American foreign policy move or action has a certain political motive.

The U.S. always wants more, which is easy to imagine. In fact, an American public figure has said that national interests shape foreign policy. The United National Anti-war Coalition, which actively cooperates with the Cubans, openly stated that the shutting down of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp — a U.S.-occupied part of Cuba — was imminent due to the protests that are still taking place in the USA. Returning Guantanamo to Cuba is a lucrative offer for the USA, since the closing of the base has already been planned.

There was a big demonstration a week ago in front of the White House in Washington calling to close the prison and extradite the remaining detainees to their respective countries or release them, depending on charges and the degree of criminal offense. Guantanamo Bay prisoners have had no access to any legal processes. Basically, they have been abducted and are being held in a concentration camp-like prison.

The list of supporters of designated terrorist organizations, which Fidel Castro demands Cuba be excluded from, is a “flexible” list. The U.S. Department of State makes the decision whether an organization should be included or excluded from the list; it is not a collegial decision.

Cuba is the center of revolution and Latin American Socialism for the ALBA alliance member countries — formally the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America. Given the new round of the Cold War between Russia and the U.S. and our long-standing good relations with Cuba, the U.S. is doing everything possible to prevent Havana from being on the side of Russian Federation in the case of the toughening of relations between Moscow and Washington. Cuba’s perspective is changing.

The U.S. understands that Fidel and Raul Castro are no longer young. They have successors; their organizations and propaganda apparatus have a well-organized power structure. Still, the country’s perspective is changing. From the tourists coming from all over the world, Cubans know firsthand what is happening in the world.

It is important to keep Cuba from repeating the fate of the Soviet Union of 1989. This scenario could bring back a Batista regime, which happened before the great revolution. In this case we get a difficult situation on the Latin American continent because Cuba is the doorway to Latin America.

Successful talks with Cuba mean successful talks with the ALBA alliance member countries, the Mercosur economic union, and other international organizations of Latin America. This is what Americans are focused on.

In every respect, Cuba is a strategically important country in the soft underbelly of the United States. Everyone understands it. Pressure from the U.S. and its great interest in Cuba, which, for some reason, it only showed half a century later, prove that the U.S. is preparing for serious confrontation and is right now strengthening its presence in the near-border region.

Canada will never be part of Russia, but Latin America and Cuba are the countries that support us, speak out against sanctions, and oppose any kind of pressure on the Russian Federation. Attempts to create a pro-American movement on the island are an expected move for which Washington is ready to invest and buy people.

Cuba is far from being the richest country in Latin America, unfortunately. The country’s primary source of revenue came from sugarcane export during the Soviet era. After the Soviet Union’s dissolution, the companies downsized. Russia must pay close attention to the situation around Cuba to prevent Washington from realizing its plans on the "island of freedom."