Now more than ever is a great opportunity to discuss how the Cuban government continues to threaten the United States’ national security. Ever since December 17 of 2014, the White House and its supporters have been working hard to sell to the American people this delusional concession package that they have labeled as a new beginning in U.S.-Cuba relations.
At its core, this new beginning is based upon a fantastical idea, a fairy tale actually, which is that the U.S. can have normal bilateral relations with the government of Cuba. The truth of the matter is that the Castro regime cannot and will never become a friend of the United States. Now why is that the case? It is because the current Cuban government has a fundamentally different outlook than can never be reconciled with the United States. Far too often, the threat posed by the Cuban government is either downplayed or is thought of as a thing of the past and these statements are the furthest from the truth. The Castro regime still poses a considerable threat to U.S. national security and interests in the region. The threat posed by the Cuban government can be divided into three sectors which are: Cuba’s well-honed counterintelligence capabilities,[ref]Alex Rogers, “Rubio Says Cuban Intelligence in U.S. is ‘Grossly Underestimated’,” Time, July 8, 2014, http://time.com/2966881/marco-rubio-cuba/ (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] support and exportation of one-party dictatorship throughout Latin America,[ref]Ana Quintana, “Don’t Celebrate America’s Diplomatic Opening to Cuba,” The National Interest, August 14, 2015, http://www.nationalinterest.org/feature/dont-celebrate-americas-diplomatic-opening-cuba-13581 (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] and robust relationships with foreign adversaries of the U.S.[ref]Bruce Klinger, “North Korean — Cuba Arms Shipment Shows Need to Tighten Sanctions,” Heritage Foundation Issue Brief No. 3996, July 12, 2013, p. 1, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/07/north-korean-cuban-arms-shipment-shows-need-to-tighten-sanctions (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]
The current situation has been further complicated by the President’s new Cuba policy. The truth of the matter is that since the December 17 announcement, this administration has allowed a hostile government to dictate the terms for normalization.[ref]Ana Quintana, “Raul Castro’s demands for Gitmo plus reparations show Cuba still a prime enemy,” ArcaMax, October 8, 2015, http://www.arcamax.com/politics/opeds/s-1734760 (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] The terms of this normalization include a concessions package, colloquially known as the “negotiations,” which include the drastic easing of sanctions.[ref]“Charting a New Course on Cuba,” Executive Office of the President of the United States, https://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy/cuba (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] Furthermore, outrageous restrictions have been placed by Havana on U.S. diplomats.[ref]Ana Quintana, “Drive a harder bargain on Cuba,” Heritage Foundation, July 6, 2015, http://www.heritage.org/research/commentary/2015/7/drive-harder-bargain-on-cuba (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] These concessions further serve the interest of the Castro regime and are detrimental to U.S. interests in the region.
HAVANA AS AN INTELLIGENCE THREAT
It is undeniable that hostile foreign intelligence threats continue to grow. Much like other issues emanating from soft power sources, intelligence threats truly represent one of the largest asymmetrical threats. One of the grandest perpetrators of this type of threat is close to U.S. shores. Last year, before the Senate Armed Services Committee, the then director of the Defense Intelligence Agency testified:
President Raul Castro will manage his nation’s political, socioeconomic, and security force conditions to maintain regime viability…While he will continue to implement economic reforms slowly and cautiously, Castro will adjust to the pace as needed to assure his regime’s continued grip on power. [Most notably] Cuban intelligence services, having proven very capable of penetrating key U.S. and DoD targets, remain the predominant counterintelligence threat to the U.S. emanating from Latin America.[ref]Michael T. Flynn, “2014 Annual Threat Assessment,” statement before the Armed Services Committee, U.S. Senate, February 11, 2014, http://www.dia.mil/News/SpeechesandTestimonies/ArticleView/tabid/11449/Article /567085/2014-annual-threat-assessment.aspx(accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]
Castro’s Cuba can best be described as a national security state with a per capita intelligence force 34 times larger than the U.S. intelligence community. Despite the crippling sanctions, the Cuban intelligence apparatus is still very capable[ref]Fred Burton, “Why the US should be wary of Cuba,” Stratfor, July 14, 2015, https://www.stratfor.com/sample/ analysis/why-us-should-be-wary-cuba (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] because there is limited correlation between the state’s financial status and its intelligence apparatus’ capabilities.[ref]Interagency OPSEC Support Staff, “Adversary Foreign Intelligence Operations,” Intelligence Threat Handbook, 1996, http://fas.org/irp/nsa/ioss/threat96/part03.htm (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]According to a study, “Cuba’s Directorate of Intelligence (DI) is among the top six intelligence services in the world in terms of efficacy against the U.S.”[ref]James M. Roberts, “Cuba at Crossroads: The Threat to U.S. National Security,” Heritage Foundation WebMemo No. 1669, p. 1, October 18, 2007, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2007/10/cuba-at-the-crossroads-the-threat-to-us-national-security (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] Between 1996 and 2003, “thirty-five of its intelligence officers or agents have been identified operating in the U.S. and neutralized.”[ref]Ibid.[/ref] As a research fellow at the Heritage Foundation said, “this is a strong evidence of the DI’s aggressiveness and open hostility towards the U.S.”[ref]Ibid.[/ref]
It is a known fact that the Cuban government traffics in intelligence. U.S. intelligence secrets collected by the Cuban intelligence apparatus have been sold to or bartered with global pariahs like Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, and other enemies of the U.S.[ref]Jaime Suchlicki, “Cuba’s Support for Terrorism and the Venezuela-Iran Nexus,” Center for Security Policy Journal, May 2, 2014, https://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/2014/05/02/cubas-support-for-terrorism-and-the-venezuela-iran-nexus/ (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]China is known to have intelligence personnel posted in Havana and Russia continues to receive Cuban signals intelligence (SIGINT) information from the island. Not to mention the thousands of Cuban DI agents operating in Venezuela. Beijing has also been busy working to improve Cuban signals intelligence and electronic warfare facilities with the goal of integrating them into China’s own global satellite network. This essentially means that the People’s Liberation Army, at a cyber-warfare complex that is 20 miles south of Havana, can now monitor phone conversations and internet transmissions in the U.S.
Though the Cuban economy is in shambles, the Cuban intelligence apparatus is still very capable. This is made evident by the numerous Cuban spies that have made Miami their base. It makes sense since Miami is the home of the exiled Cuban community. Everyone remembers the 5-man “Wasp Network” sent to the U.S. to infiltrate military installations and spy on the exile community.[ref]Thomas Brown, “U.S. court upholds convictions of Cuban spies,” Reuter, June 4, 2008, http://www.reuters.com /article/2008/06/04/idUSN04314945 (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] The 5-man team was eventually caught and convicted of espionage, but not before their work contributed to the shooting down of the Brothers to the Rescue planes which led to the deaths of American citizens in 1996.
Florida International University, a public university based in Miami, was home to two Cuban spies,[ref]“Florida Professor admits he was Cuban Spy,” CNN, December 20, 2006, http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/12/19 /professor.spy/ (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] a married couple, who were also instructors at the university. In 2010, another husband and wife team was found guilty of espionage. This particular team was not composed of professors or academics, but worked as careers officials at the State Department.[ref]Jason Ryan, “Bad Month for Spies: Cuba Spy Gets Life Without Parole, Wife Gets 6 ½ Years,” ABC News, July 16, 2010, http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/remorse-cuban-spy-kendall-myers-life-parole-wife/story?id=11182193 (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]They spied for the Cuban government for over 3 decades. One of the couples even worked in the intelligence sector. All of these cases pale in comparison to the Ana Belen Montes case.[ref]Jim Popkin, “Ana Montes did much harm spying for Cuba. Chances are, you haven’t heard of her,” The Washington Post, accessed October 19, 2015, http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/feature/wp/2013/04/18/ana-montes-did-much-harm-spying-for-cuba-chances-are-you-havent-heard-of-her/.[/ref]Ana Belen Montes worked her way through the ranks. She rose from an administrative position at the Department of Justice (DOJ) to become the Defense Intelligence Agency’s (DIA) top analyst for Cuba. She spied for the Castro regime for 17 years. In terms of damage to U.S. national security, Montes was really the equivalent of Edward Snowden. At the DIA, Montes was literally known as the Queen of Cuba.[ref]Ibid.[/ref] The Montes case, and the damage that it has caused, speaks volumes of the capabilities of Cuba’s intelligence apparatus.
The fact that Cuba was able gain access to higher levels of information and the damages that their intelligence services has caused is very remarkable. The Cuban intelligence services had the foresight to recruit and cultivate an asset from an entry-level position at the Department of Justice to the highest ranking official working on Cuba at the U.S. Armed Forces’ principal intelligence agency.[ref]Ibid.[/ref] The remarkability lies in the fact that Montes was recruited while she was still in school. Due to her work and actions, Cuban intelligence service successfully compromised every major U.S. military operation since the 1983 liberation of Grenada and provided U.S. enemies with forewarning of impeding U.S. operations. Montes’ activities were ended only by her arrest which occurred just days before September 11. It doesn’t take a genius to imagine what Cuba could have done with the information that they have collected on the U.S. ongoing global war on terrorism. The damage that Cuba has done, and continues to do, within Latin America must be seen within an international context.
CUBA’S DESTABILIZING ROLE IN LATIN AMERICA
The United States has an abiding geopolitical interest in the region especially in ensuring the stability of the hemisphere. This interest is derived from the U.S. close cultural, economic, and demographic ties with countries in Latin America. There are many destabilizing forces that currently plague the region, but to understand the present dynamics, one need to look no further than the Cuban-Venezuelan relationship. Chavismo or 21st century socialism, an ideology that emulates Castro’s socialist one-party dictatorship, has set to transform the region.[ref]Ray Wasler, “Time Is Ripe for U.S. Policy to Address Anti-Americanism in Latin America,” Heritage Foundation Issue Brief No. 3740, p. 1, September 24, 2012, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2012/09/us-policy-to-address-anti-americanism-in-latin-america-needed (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] The spread of this new ideology is funded by Venezuelan oil money and spearhead by Cuba.[ref]Ibid.[/ref]These two nations have set out to fundamentally alter the political landscape by uniting the countries of Latin America to reduce the U.S. regional power and presence.[ref]Ibid.[/ref] This has been the core tenet of the 21st century socialist, movement.
It is important to keep in mind that Latin America and the Western hemisphere at large, barring Cuba for obvious reasons, came to a regional consensus decades ago which was grounded on two key principles: free trade and democratic values.[ref]Department of International Law, Organization of American States, Charter of the Organization of American States, June 10, 1993, http://www.oas.org/dil/treaties_A-41_Charter_of_the_Organization_of_American_States.htm (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] This consensus was further reinforced on September 11, 2001 with the Inter-American Democratic Charter.[ref]Organization of American States, Inter-American Democratic Charter, September 11, 2001, http://www.oas.org/charter/docs/resolution1_en_p4.htm (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] The charter was an achievement that no other region has accomplished and will not, most likely, achieve.
The 21st century socialism project is a danger. It has caused the region to be divided in two for the considerable future. On one side of the continent, there are prosperous countries where the rule of law is upheld and respected. Most of these countries have signed free trade agreements (FTA) and enjoy warm bilateral relations with the U.S. On the other side of the continent, there exist a number of countries that are members of or sympathetic to the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA), which include Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Argentina. These countries have spearheaded an unprecedented wave of anti-American sentiment in the region. However, in terms of conventional military power, ALBA member states do not pose a major threat to the U.S. The ideology that these countries promote, a radical form of socialist populism, is undermining traditional U.S. foreign policy objectives. This regional bloc is actively seeking to create a hostile environment for the U.S. and continues to undermine U.S. attempts at regional cooperation. In addition to using regional proxies to unite the Americas against the U.S., ALBA nations have consistently provided sanctuary to regional and global terrorist organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and international pariahs.[ref]Douglas Farah, “Threats to the Homeland: Iran’s Extending Influence in the Western Hemisphere,” testimony before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency, Committee on Homeland Security, U.S. House of Representatives, July 9, 2013, http://docs.house.gov/meetings/HM/HM09/20130709/101046/HHRG-113-HM09-Wstate-FarahD-20130709.pdf (accessed on October 20, 2015).[/ref] An example would be Iran’s and Syria’s status as observer states in ALBA. Just as the former Soviet-backed Cuba declared previously, ALBA members seek to end U.S. traditional ties to the region. They are using every available tool, ranging from diplomatic to military, in order to undermine U.S. influence. ALBA has launched a full on propaganda war against the U.S. Their hostility towards the U.S. is not masked, but very evident. The member countries have expelled U.S. diplomats,[ref]Diego Ore and Brian Ellsworth, “Venezuela raids opposition party office, expels three U.S. diplomats,” Reuters, February 14, 2014, http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/18/us-venezuela-protests-idUSBREA1G17T20140218 (accessed on October 20, 2015).[/ref]shut down traditional U.S.-led security initiatives like counter-narcotics programs,[ref]Gonzalo Solano, “U.S. Closes Military Post in Ecuador,” The Washington Post, September 19, 2009, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/18/AR2009091803407.html (accessed on October 20, 2015).[/ref] and impeded bilateral trade relations. An example would be Ecuadorian President Correa’s actions in 2011. He revoked U.S. access to Ecuador’s Manta military base.[ref]Ibid.[/ref] This presented a huge problem since the Manta base is the only forward operating location in Latin America from which U.S. forces have worked alongside the Ecuadorian military on counter-narcotics and surveillance programs in the Andes. It should be kept in mind that the Andean ridge is the exclusive zone from where coca, the primary component for cocaine, is grown. Another interesting fact is that 95% of cocaine bound for U.S. markets originates from the Andean ridge.[ref]Executive Office of the President of the United States, Office of National Drug Control Policy, “Coca in the Andes,” https://www.whitehouse.gov/ondcp/targeting-cocaine-at-the-source (accessed on October 20, 2015).[/ref] It should be no surprise that the illicit drug trade has exploded within the ALBA countries.
The Venezuelan government’s involvement in the illicit drug trade cannot be ignored. The culpability in the drug trade of Venezuela’s leaders is undeniable. One simply has to look at the activities of former intelligence chief, Hugo Carvajal,[ref]“Treasury Targets Venezuelan Government Officials Supporting FARC,” U.S. Department of Treasury, September 12, 2008, http://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/hp1132.aspx (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] or the allegations made against National Assembly President, Diosdado Cabello.[ref]Arron Daugherty, “Top Venezuelan Govt Official Accused of Drug Trafficking,” Insight Crime, January 27, 2015, http://www.insightcrime.org/news-briefs/top-venezuela-govt-official-accused-of-drug-trafficking (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] The reality is that, in less than two decades, Cuba has supervised Venezuela’s descent into a criminalized narco-state. Another threat emanating from Cuba, and by extension the ALBA states, is their close relationship with foreign adversaries.[ref]Ray Wasler, “State Sponsors of Terrorism: Time to Add Venezuela to the List,” Heritage Foundation Backgrounder No. 2362, January 20, 2010, p. 11, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2010/01/state-sponsors-of-terrorism-time-to-add-venezuela-to-the-list (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]U.S. geopolitical foes have exploited, and will continue to exploit, the region’s proximity to the U.S. homeland by seeking relationships with willing regional partners to counter U.S. influence. These foreign adversaries are finding receptive hosts within the ALBA countries. One of the primary adversaries of the U.S., Russia, is developing strategic regional partnerships in the form of military cooperation, arms sales, trade agreements, and even cooperation in counter-narcotics operations.
In addition to the high profile visits by the Russian Navy’s Interfleet Surface Action Group to Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, Russia deployed bombers in the region. Russia has used a regional exercise to deploy two long-range strategic bombers to Venezuela and Nicaragua.[ref]Ana R. Quintana and Charlotte M. Florance, “Regions of Enduring Interest: Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa,” 2015 Index of Military Strength, http://index.heritage.org/militarystrength/important-essays-analysis/regions-enduring-interest-latin-america-caribbean-africa/ (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] Furthermore, Russia has announced plans to build military bases in Nicaragua, Cuba, and Venezuela following its annexation of the Crimean peninsula.[ref]Ibid.[/ref] Activities such as these have not been seen for over three decades, ever since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Venezuela is the largest recipient in Latin America of Russian arms sales. The country has purchased a large amount of weapons from Russia which includes tanks, fighter jets, and combat helicopters.[ref]Ariel Cohen, “Swords and Shield: Boosting Venezuela,” Heritage Foundation, January 9, 2009, http://www.heritage.org/research/commentary/2009/01/swords-and-shields-boosting-venezuela (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] Venezuela has also received a license to produce AK-103s[ref]Editorial, “Weapons: The Venezuelan AK-47 Factory,” Strategy Page, October 26, 2008, http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htweap/20081026.aspx (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref]in the state’s arms factories. In 2008, reports indicate that Russia sold a batch of SA-24, which are shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles, to Venezuela.[ref]Juan Forero, “Venezuela acquires 1,800 antiaircraft missiles from Russia,” The Washington Post, December 11, 2010, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/11/AR2010121102586.html (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] The SA-24 is the same as the weapons system that took down Malaysian flight MH17 over Ukraine. The People’s Republic of China has been another active player in the region. Much of China’s engagement has focused on expanding bilateral economic relations and major investments in infrastructure development projects. Currently, a Chinese company with close connections to the government has proposed to invest $40 billion in constructing an inter-oceanic Nicaragua canal.[ref]Jessica Zuckerman, “Nicaragua’s Canal Push and Concerns for the U.S.,” Heritage Foundation Issue Brief No. 4031, August 30, 2013, p. 2, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/08/nicaragua-s-canal-push-and-concerns-for-the-us (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] In 2013, the Navy of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army conducted a visit to three countries and had its first naval exercises with the Argentine Navy. Visits to the region by senior members of the People’s Liberation Army are common and virtually every country in Latin America maintains a permanent defense attaché in the People’s Republic of China. The bulk of China’s military and defense sales have gone to ALBA countries, which illustrates its intent to leverage its relationships with Latin American countries that are explicitly anti-U.S. Another cause for concern is the Islamic Republic’s growing presence in Latin America. Iran has spent the past decade increasing its regional economic relations and diplomatic presence, particularly in ALBA countries.
Credible and unclassified reports indicate that Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed Shia militant group, created a presence in Latin America. Its presence is limited to ideological or religious sympathizers and criminal facilitators, who see an opportunity in linking drug, contraband, and weapons trafficking to the illicit network and external market access managed by Hezbollah.[ref]Ana R. Quintana and Charlotte M. Florance, “Regions of Enduring Interest: Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa,” 2015 Index of Military Strength, http://index.heritage.org/militarystrength/important-essays-analysis/regions-enduring-interest-latin-america-caribbean-africa/ (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] Regional supporters of other international terrorist organizations engage in money laundering and, quite possibly, even recruiting.
PRESIDENT OBAMA’S DIPLOMACY AND CONCESSIONS WILL NOT ALTER CUBA’S HOSTILITY
It is unquestionable that the White House’s new policy of reconciliation with Cuba is doomed to fail from the onset because it is not comprehensive. Much like the agreement with Iran concerning its nuclear program, the U.S. chose to do a piecemeal deal. The administration has chosen to focus only one aspect of the U.S.-Cuba relationship. The hostilities between the U.S. and Cuba are not reason for the current embargo or the lack of an ambassador to the island. The main reason is fundamentally ideological. The Castro regime is incapable of altering its behavior to fit into the established norms of the Western Hemisphere. The lack of respect for the protection of basic human rights and democratic governance is embedded deeply in to the DNA of the Castro regime. It is one of the reasons why the Cuban regime has been working for over half a century to alter the political dynamics of Latin America. The moment that the current U.S. administration decided to pursue a path of normalization without any preconditions, it has essentially condoned and absolved the Western Hemisphere’s longest running military dictatorship.
The actions of the U.S. government are tantamount to giving a stamp of approval to over half a century of aggression and hostility by the Castro regime to Cuba’s people, the region, and the U.S. At its core, the current normalization process relies upon the faulty premise that concessions can turn enemies into friends. It relies on the erroneous supposition that stronger economic and political relations will transform a brutal regime, which has terrorized its people for almost six decades, into a bastion of democracy. Dictators can never be appeased. Accepting a dictator’s demands does not satisfy the ambition, the greed, and lust of power. Such actions only embolden a dictator. The concessions given have only emboldened Raúl Castro to continue activities that threaten the U.S. Havana has not yet recalled the thousands of military and intelligence agents that it sent to Venezuela.[ref]Frank Lopes Ballesteros, “G2 cubano amplía campaña de espionaje en Venezuela,” El Universal, September 15, 2013, http://www.eluniversal.com/internacional/130915/g2-cubano-amplia-campana-de-espionaje-en-venezuela (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] It has not yet released its grip over the Venezuelan government nor has it even attempted to ease it. The Castro regime has not yet ended its relationship with Putin’s Russia. In fact, the ties have only been strengthened and expanded.
Just as the highest ranking U.S. diplomat in almost four decades arrived in Cuba early this year, a Russian warship docked in Cuba. The dual intelligence and war ship, the Viktor Leonov, docked in Havana.[ref]Philip Sherwell , “Russian spy ship docks in Havana on eve of historic US-Cuba talks,” The Telegraph, Januray 20, 2015, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/centralamericaandthecaribbean/cuba/11358732/Russian-spy-ship-docks-in-Havana-on-eve-of-historic-Cuba-US-talks.html (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] This year alone, Russian spy ships have paid three port calls in Cuban harbors. The Castro regime continues to hold talks with Russia that concern reopening the Lourdes signals spy base.[ref]Editorial, “”Russia ‘to reopen Lourdes spy base in Cuba’, “BBC News, July 16, 2014, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-28338996 (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] In fact, just three months ago, as the Obama administration was moving to remove Cuba from the list of State Sponsor of Terrorism, Colombian authorities seized a Chinese vessel with a cache of weapons bound for Havana.[ref]Editorial, “Colombia detains Cuba-bound Chinese ship carrying arms,” BBC News, March 4, 2015, http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-31723157 (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] Just two years ago, Cuba became the first country in the Western Hemisphere to violate the sanctions placed by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The Castro regime smuggled weapons, which included fighter jets, to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.[ref]Bruce Klinger, “North Korean-Cuban Arms Shipment Shows Need to Tighten Sanctions,” Heritage Foundation Issue Brief No. 3996, July 22, 2013, http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2013/07/north-korean-cuban-arms-shipment-shows-need-to-tighten-sanctions (accessed October 20, 2015).[/ref] In conclusion, it is delusional to believe that diplomacy alone can alter the behavior of Castro regime which still remains a national security threat to the U.S.
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