Top Cuban official accuses US of attempting to impress battle

WASHINGTON -A visiting senior Cuban official on Tuesday accused the Trump administration of ratcheting up tensions between Washington and Havana and expressed issues that the U.S. was attempting to impress a army confrontation.

Speaking to reporters on the Cuban Embassy in Washington, Johana Tablada, deputy director for U.S. affairs in Cuba’s international ministry, stated an armed conflict between the 2 outdated Cold War rivals was “not a good idea” and that the Cuban authorities was attempting to ease the state of affairs however that the U.S. appeared decided to additional injury relations.

Tablada stated new Trump administration measures concentrating on Communist-ruled Cuba intend to rupture relations “to create conditions, in my opinion, for, if necessary, a military confrontation.”

Republican U.S. President Donald Trump and his prime officers have taken a hardline method to Cuba since he took workplace in January, returning longtime foe Cuba to a U.S. listing of State Sponsors of Terrorism, tightening guidelines on remittances, and shutting off migration applications that allowed some Cubans to work within the U.S. legally. 

Trump officers haven’t publicly threatened any army motion. 

A State Department spokesperson stated the Trump administration had “no indication” that the Cuban authorities was prepared for a “meaningful” dialogue with the U.S.

“We call on the regime to release the American citizens, return U.S. fugitives, and free the hundreds of Cuban political prisoners who remain imprisoned and used as bargaining chips,” the spokesperson stated in a press release.

U.S. Chief of Mission Mike Hammer – the highest U.S. diplomat in Havana – has traveled the island extensively in latest months to satisfy with political dissidents, elevating the ire of the Cuban authorities, which accuses him of searching for to foment unrest.

Cuba’s international ministry final week issued a verbal warning to Hammer, saying he had incited “Cuban citizens to commit serious criminal acts, attack the constitutional order, or encourage them to act against the authorities,” calling his actions a violation of the Vienna Convention norms on diplomatic relations.

Tablada accused Hammer of channeling U.S. humanitarian funds to undermine the Cuban authorities and stated Cuban diplomats wouldn’t be allowed to interact in comparable conduct within the U.S. 

“To push both countries into scenarios of confrontation and collision is not a good idea,” she stated.

Just days earlier than Trump took workplace in January former President Joe Biden’s administration eliminated Cuba from its terrorism blacklist, successfully reversing sanctions from Trump’s first time period. 

After returning to workplace, Trump shortly returned Cuba to the blacklist and likewise reinstated most of the restrictions on commerce and journey that Biden had eased. 

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