U.S. preparing plan to draw down embassy
staff in Havana: sources
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[September 29, 2017]
By Matt Spetalnick and Patricia Zengerle
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is
crafting a plan for a drawdown of staff from the American embassy in
Havana in response to still-unexplained incidents that have harmed the
health of some U.S. diplomats there, U.S. and congressional officials
said on Thursday.
The State Department's plan, which was being finalized and could be
announced within days, would call for the departure of non-essential
staff and diplomats' families, the sources said.
But it was unclear whether leaving the island would be voluntary or
compulsory, and one U.S. official said some details were still being
worked out.
U.S. officials say 21 U.S. diplomats and family members have been
afflicted by health problems of unknown origin, including hearing loss,
dizziness and nausea. Several Canadians have also been affected in Cuba,
a Canadian official has said.
The Cuban government has denied any role and is conducting an
investigation. But it has so far said it has been unable to determine
the cause.
Proposals for a drawdown have moved forward since U.S. Secretary of
State Rex Tillerson met Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez in
Washington on Tuesday to discuss the case, which has been threatening
the already fragile detente between the two former Cold War foes.
The State Department is expected to stop short of saying it will close
the recently reopened embassy because of the mysterious affair, despite
Tillerson having said last week that such a move was under
consideration.
But a partial evacuation, even one depicted by the Trump administration
as a safety measure, would also send a message of U.S. displeasure over
Cuba’s handling of the matter and deliver another blow to Obama-era
engagement policies with Havana.
CONGRESSIONAL STAFFERS BRIEFED
U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters Thursday
that Tillerson – who is now on his way to Beijing - was reviewing all of
his options for “how to best protect our American personnel” in Cuba and
that she was not ready to announce any decision.
But congressional staffers were briefed on the plan on Thursday, two
congressional sources said.
Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, a harsh critic of the Cuban
government, hinted at the State Department’s coming decision. “Any
reduction of Americans from @USEmbassyHavana should also require equal
number of Castro employees leaving regime's embassy in U.S.,” he said in
a message on Twitter.
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A vintage car passes by in front of the U.S. Embassy in Havana,
Cuba, January 12, 2017. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini/File Photo
The State Department declined comment. McClatchy news service was
the first to report this week that the United States would soon
begin a major withdrawal of Havana staff.
Depending on how many diplomats leave, the Havana embassy – the main
point of contact for U.S. citizens visiting the island as well as
American companies doing business there – could be left with more of
a skeletal staff to handle responsibilities.
Though Washington has not cast direct blame on Cuban authorities,
the State Department said Tillerson reminded Rodriguez at Tuesday’s
meeting of Cuba’s obligation to protect diplomats and their
families.
In the highest-level U.S.-Cuba meeting since President Donald Trump
took office, Rodriguez warned the United States against taking hasty
decisions and urged Washington to cooperate with its ongoing
investigation. Washington earlier this year expelled two Cuban
diplomats over the alleged incidents.
The case has brought simmering tensions between the two countries
since Trump took office to the boil.
Trump, who in June vowed to partially roll back the detente with
Cuba agreed by his Democratic predecessor, President Barack Obama,
called the Cuban government "corrupt and destabilizing" in his
address to the United Nations General Assembly last week.
He said he would not lift the U.S. trade embargo on the Caribbean
island until it made "fundamental reforms." Cuba described his
comments as "unacceptable and meddling."
(Reporting By Matt Spetalnick and Patricia Zengerle; Additional
reporting by Sarah Marsh in Havana; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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