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• 01 / 09 / 2010

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Cuba angrily rejected on Friday U.S. accusations that it supports terrorist groups and demanded its removal from a U.S. list of "state sponsors of terrorism."

In the communist-led island's latest public criticism of the Obama administration, Cuba's government issued a statement disputing U.S. charges that it backs Basque and Colombian groups engaged in terrorist activities and that it illegally harbours fugitives from U.S. justice.

Cuba demanded its "immediate exclusion" from the U.S. terrorism list, calling it an "unjust, arbitrary and politically motivated designation that contradicts the exemplary conduct of our country in confronting terrorism."

It accused the United States of harbouring "hundreds of criminals, murderers and terrorists" that  acted against the Cuban government since Fidel Castro took power in a 1959 revolution. Fidel Castro, 83, handed over the Cuban presidency to his younger brother Raul Castro, 78, in early 2008.

Cuba has long chafed at being on the U.S. "state sponsors of terrorism" list, where it was placed in 1982 during the administration of President Ronald Reagan.

But its latest reaction signalled growing anger and frustration in Havana with U.S. President Barack Obama, who had raised expectations for an improvement in U.S.-Cuban relations when he said early in his administration last year that he wanted to "recast" long-hostile ties.

Cuba reacted angrily earlier this week when Washington said U.S.-bound air passengers from 14 nations including Cuba would receive extra security checks, including a pat-down search.

The new measures followed the botched bombing attempt of a Northwest Airlines flight into Detroit on Christmas Day by a Nigerian believed to be an operative for al Qaeda.

The 14 countries include the four on the State Department's terrorism list - Cuba, Iran, Syria and Sudan -- and 10 "countries of interest": Afghanistan, Algeria, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and Yemen.

On Tuesday, the Cuban government summoned the United States' top diplomat in Havana to protest its presence on the list, which it called a "hostile action" aimed at justifying the U.S. trade embargo imposed against the island since 1962.

Source: yahoo