• Submitted by: admin
• Havana
• History
• international
• national
• personalities
• United States
• Personalities
• Politics and Government
• 01 / 06 / 2010

---

A US citizen detained in Cuba for the past month was denounced by a senior official here Wednesday as a secret intelligence agent dispatched by the Washington to aid in the downfall of the communist regime.

Ricardo Alarcon, one of Cuba's top figures and speaker of the National Assembly, gave the most detailed and damning assessment yet of the case of the American detained here, in a major blow to any hopes for closer bilateral ties.

The US citizen, who remains unidentified, was arrested December 5, reportedly while distributing cell phones, laptops and other communications equipment.

"This was a gentleman hired by a company that hires people to work for US intelligence; we have already done an investigation and I can assure you that he is doing much better -- and I mean much, much better -- than the victims of US contractors around the world," Alarcon told reporters.

"As (President) Raul (Castro) has said, that was no contractor," Alarcon added, saying that the contractor belonged to the ranks of hired "agents, torturers and spies" who are part of an American policy of "privatizing war."

The New York Times has said the detainee is a US government contract worker employed by Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI) of Bethesda, Maryland just outside Washington.

DAI, which is regularly contracted by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), has confirmed one of its employees was arrested, but has provided no additional details, citing privacy concerns.

In a speech to the national assembly on December 20, President Castro accused the Obama administration of sending the man here to "illegally" supply Cuban opposition members with advanced communications equipment.

"The enemy is as active as ever," said president Raul Castro in his annual address to the assembly.

"In recent weeks, we have witnessed an increasing number of efforts by the new (US) administration with that objective. The fostering of open and covert subversion against Cuba is on the rise," Cuba's president warned.

He claimed Washington has earmarked 55 million dollars to support Cuban dissidents.

There had been a slight thaw in US-Cuba relations since Obama took office in January and lifted some US travel and remittance restrictions to the island nation. Both governments recently resumed negotiations on migration and postal exchange issues.

Yet after more than five decades of enmity, these baby steps have not turned into strides. The United States insists Cuba should change, while Havana suggests the United States should do the same.

The neighbors have not had full diplomatic relations since 1961.


Source: Yahoo