U.S., Cuba Trade Accusations Over Shortfall of Visas for Would-Be Migrants
|
|
Thursday, August 9, 2007
MEXICO CITY, Aug. 8 -- A diplomatic dispute escalated Wednesday as Cuba and the United States blamed each other for blocking thousands of Cubans from legally leaving the island and moving to the United States.
Under a 1994 bilateral agreement, Cuba allows a minimum of 20,000 people to migrate to the United States as long as they are granted visas by the U.S. Interests Section in Havana. Last month, the U.S. government confirmed that it would fall well short of meeting the quota, but blamed the Cubans for the shortfall, saying Cuba has blocked the United States from sending diplomatic personnel to the island to process visas.
On Wednesday, Dagoberto Rodríguez, chief of the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, said that he had sent a formal letter of complaint about the shortfall and that "we categorically reject" U.S. claims that Cuba is not living up to its agreement to allow U.S. diplomatic workers access to the island.
"U.S. authorities deliberately lie," Rodríguez said in a statement.
Rodríguez also disputed U.S. accusations that Cubans are blocking equipment and other materials needed to process the visas. He said more than half of a recent U.S. shipment to Cuba contained materials "to promote subversive activities." He also said the United States was violating its "wet foot, dry foot" policy -- which grants asylum to most Cuban migrants who reach U.S. soil -- by failing to send all illegal Cuban migrants captured at sea back to Cuba.
State Department spokesman Tom Casey responded in a press briefing Wednesday by accusing Cuba "of interfering with the work of the Interests Section."
"There have been any number of instances over the last few months where vital equipment and supplies, personnel needed to repair some of the things in our Interests Section, have been blocked or prevented from entry," Casey told reporters.
The dust-up began last month when Cuba informally complained that only 10,274 visas had been granted as of June 30 to Cubans who want to leave the island. U.S. officials did not dispute the figure and said the United States would not have enough time to grant all the remaining visas before Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year. It remains unclear how many visas will eventually be granted, though the shortfall could be as high 5,000.
Bilateral tensions have deepened since Cuban leader Fidel Castro became ill last year and handed over power to his brother, Raúl Castro. Since then, Cuban exiles in Miami have increased their calls for a regime change. Meanwhile, Fidel Castro has mocked President Bush in editorials, and Raúl Castro said in a July 26 speech that he is looking forward to the end of Bush's "erratic and dangerous administration."