US

US int’l broadcasting to Cuba

January 17, 2012

Kim Andrew Elliott, an audience research analyst in the U.S. International Broadcasting Bureau and former producer/host of VOA’s Communications World (1995-2002), recently offered his thoughts about US international broadcasting to Cuba: Cuba needs some source of independent, outside news. It is impossible to get an adequate estimate of audience size in Cuba, but two percent [...]

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Key political risks to watch

January 4, 2012

Reuters‘ near term alert to key politcal risks to monitor in Cuba: Resolution of outstanding short-term debt. Signs of increased interest in foreign investment. U.S. inspection of drilling rig. Results of Repsol’s exploratory well. U.S. pressure to stop the drilling. Furthermore, on international relations: A planned Papal visit in March and improved ties with Brazil are bright [...]

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Ammo deal is response to US missile shield

December 1, 2011

Russia Today, the state-run television news network, claims that Russia’s plan to sell ammunition-making technology to Havana is a response to the U.S. missile-defence plans in Europe. Moreover, Pravda chimes in on the Cuban armed forces’ modernization starting point: From 1961 to 1991, the volume of arms shipments from the USSR to Cuba made up [...]

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Cuban-American among top global thinkers

November 30, 2011

Foreign Policy magazine has selected the top 100 global thinkers in its December 2011 issue. Yoani Sanchez from Cuba ranked 81st among the top 100. However, Cuban-American Carlos Pascual was also ranked 23rd among a group of U.S. diplomats. The Harvard graduate was a controversial ambassador to Mexico, who wrote cables noting the Mexican government’s “inability [...]

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Dusting off U.S. plans to invade Cuba

November 22, 2011

Thomas Ricks, a former Washington Post journalist, who covered the U.S. military for the newspaper and author of two books on Iraq, came across handwritten notes in the papers of General Lyman Lemnitzer (chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff early during the JFK administration) containing a summary of CINCLANT’s (Commander in Chief, Atlantic Command) operational plan for Cuba [...]

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Preconditions for political violence in Cuba

November 17, 2011

Three months ago, the Canadian government’s Economic & Political Intelligence Centre at Export Development Canada—EDC (Canada’s export credit agency, which helps Canadian exporters and investors expand their international business) issued its political outlook on Cuba: Raúl Castro’s pragmatism has resulted in investment and cooperation agreements with a variety of countries. Companies from several countries are also building [...]

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