(AFP) – Senior US and Cuban military officers met on Friday at Guantanamo Bay, the US base on the communist island, as relations between the two countries deteriorate over President Donald Trump’s threatened takeover. US General Francis Donovan met with Cuban General Roberto Legra Sotolongo “for a brief exchange on operational security matters,” US Southern Command said in a statement issued along with a photograph of the meeting. “Gen. Donovan also led a perimeter security assessment of the naval base and discussed force protection, safety of service members and their families, and operational readiness with base officials.”
Cuba’s Ministry of Revolutionary Armed Forces stressed that “both delegations consider the meeting to have been positive” and they agreed “to maintain communication between the two military commands,” according to a statement released on Facebook. The uniformed men met at the US base at the southeastern tip of the island.
– Deteriorating relations –
Relations between Havana and Washington have continued to worsen since January, when the United States imposed a de facto oil blockade on the island by operating a military raid to remove leftist Nicolas Maduro from power in Venezuela. Without Caracas as a lifeline, Cuba has struggled to keep electricity on, or food and medicine in stock. Cuba’s other allies in Russia, China, and Iran are also facing US pressure to back off, through a fresh round of sanctions against Cuban companies and leaders. US officials also brought an indictment against former president Raul Castro, in a case that dates back to 1996.
Now Cuba is facing the brink of collapse. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is Cuban American, has said the US is seeing a diplomatic solution to the standoff. Reports last week suggested that Havana was considering drone strikes on the base in the event of an American attack. Donovan led a perimeter security assessment of the US facility and discussed safety of service members and operational readiness, the statement said.
Guantanamo Bay, 430 miles (700 kilometers) southeast of Miami, on the southeastern coast of Cuba, is notorious as the site of abuse against terror suspects detained after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Trump has also planned to use the base as a holding center for undocumented migrants. “Naval Station Guantanamo Bay is a vital operational and logistical hub that supports US military efforts to counter threats that undermine security, stability, and democracy in our hemisphere,” US Southern Command said.
© 2024 AFP
