US embassy cable - 04ROME2517

C O N F I D E N T I A L ROME 002517 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPT. FOR WHA/CCA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/28/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, ETTC, CU, IT, HUMAN RIGHTS 
SUBJECT: ITALY - LIBERTAD ACT TITLE III WAIVER REVIEW 
 
REF: STATE 135512 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: A/POL MINISTER-COUNSELOR GARY ROBBINS FOR REASONS 1.5 (B 
) AND (D). 
 
    SUMMARY 
------- 
 
1. (C) MISSION BELIEVES RENEWING THE TITLE III LIBERTAD ACT 
WAIVER WOULD ENHANCE THE POSSIBILITY OF INCREASED US-ITALIAN 
COOPERATION ON CUBA AND HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON ALREADY 
STRONG BILATERAL RELATIONS WITH ITALY. ITALIAN POLICY TOWARDS 
CUBA FOLLOWS THE EU COMMON POSITION ON CUBA, WHICH IS BASED 
ON "CONSTRUCTIVE ENGAGEMENT." WHILE IN THE EU PRESIDENCY IN 
JULY 2003, ITALY LED THE EU TO CONDEMN STRONGLY THE CUBAN 
GOVERNMENT FOR ITS NEGATIVE ATTITUDE TOWARDS EU MEMBER STATES 
AND FOR THE DETERIORATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ON THE ISLAND. 
FURTHER BILATERAL COOPERATION ON CUBA POLICY COULD BEST BE 
ENSURED BY RENEWING THE TITLE III LIBERTAD ACT WAIVER. END 
SUMMARY. 
 
RECENT ITALY-CUBA ECONOMIC ACTIVITY 
----------------------------------- 
 
2. (C) ON JUNE 25, WE DISCUSSED ITALY-CUBA RELATIONS WITH 
PAOLO MIRAGLIA, MFA OFFICE DIRECTOR FOR CENTRAL AMERICA AND 
THE CARIBBEAN. MIRAGLIA SAID THAT ABOUT 140 ITALIAN COMPANIES 
HAVE SOME KIND OF BUSINESS CONTACT WITH CUBA. MOST ARE 
CONCENTRATED IN THE FOOD AND TOURISM INDUSTRIES. MIRAGLIA 
REPORTED THAT ITALIAN EXPORTS TO CUBA IN 2003 TOTALED ABOUT 
190 MILLION EURO WHILE IMPORTS FROM CUBA WERE AROUND 10 
MILLION EURO - REPRESENTING A REDUCTION IN BILATERAL TRADE OF 
ABOUT 20 PER CENT IN COMPARISON WITH 2002. HE STATED THAT 
THIS DECREASE IN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY WAS, IN PART, A REFLECTION 
OF THE HARSHER LINE TAKEN BY THE EU AND ITALY SINCE THE MARCH 
2003 CRACKDOWN ON DISSIDENTS BY THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT. 

ITALIAN AND EU POLICY TOWARDS CUBA 
---------------------------------- 
 
3. (C) ITALIAN POLICY TOWARDS CUBA FOLLOWS THE EU COMMON 
POSITION ON CUBA, WHICH DATES BACK TO 1996 AND IS BASED ON 
"CONSTRUCTIVE ENGAGEMENT," WHICH SUPPORTS "THE ENCOURAGEMENT 
OF A PROCESS OF PEACEFUL TRANSITION TO A PLURALIST DEMOCRACY 
AND RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS." ALTHOUGH THE JUNE 8 EVALUATION 
OF THE EU COMMON POSITION REITERATED THESE OBJECTIVES, OUR 
INTERLOCUTORS NOTE THAT RELATIONS WITH CUBA DRAMATICALLY 
DETERIORATED TO AN ALL TIME LOW AFTER THE MARCH 2003 
CRACKDOWN. NOTWITHSTANDING THE POLICY OF CONSTRUCTIVE 
ENGAGEMENT, IN JULY 2003 ITALY (AS EU PRESIDENCY) LED THE EU 
TO CONDEMN STRONGLY THE UNACCEPTABLE ATTITUDE OF THE CUBAN 
GOVERNMENT TOWARDS EU DELEGATIONS IN HAVANA, TO CITE THE 
DETERIORATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ON THE ISLAND, AND TO ADOPT THE 
FOLLOWING MEASURES: LIMITATION OF HIGH-LEVEL BILATERAL 
GOVERNMENTAL VISITS; REDUCED PARTICIPATION IN CULTURAL AND 
ECONOMIC EVENTS ORGANIZED BY CUBAN AUTHORITIES; AND 
INVITATIONS TO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE POLITICAL OPPOSITION 
AND FAMILY MEMBERS OF IMPRISONED DISSIDENTS TO NATIONAL DAY 
CELEBRATIONS IN HAVANA. 
 
4. (C) ON A BILATERAL BASIS, ITALY ALSO SUSPENDED COOPERATION 
PROGRAMS IN JULY 2003 (WITH THE EXCEPTION OF HUMANITARIAN 
AID), LIMITED HIGH-LEVEL BILATERAL MINISTERIAL VISITS (NO 
BILATERAL VISITS HAVE OCCURRED DURING THE LAST SIX MONTHS) 
AND REDUCED ITS PROFILE IN CULTURAL AND ECONOMIC EVENTS. 
MIRAGLIA NOTED THAT THE EU COMMON POSITION HAS LED TO 
INCREASED CRITICISM OF THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT AND HAS PROVIDED 
    AN IMPORTANT PLATFORM FOR MORAL SUPPORT FOR CUBAN CIVIL 
SOCIETY AND DEMOCRATIC MOVEMENTS WHILE MAINTAINING ITS POLICY 
OF CONSTRUCTIVE ENGAGEMENT. HE STRESSED THE NEED TO CONTINUE 
ENGAGING CUBA IN ORDER TO OPEN FURTHER ITS ECONOMY. 
 
COMMENT: TITLE III WAIVER 
------------------------- 
 
5. (C) WE BELIEVE THAT RENEWAL OF THE TITLE III WAIVER WOULD 
NOT JEOPARDIZE US NATIONAL INTERESTS IN ITALY. RATHER, IT 
WOULD HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT ON OUR ALREADY STRONG BILATERAL 
RELATIONS WITH ITALY AND THE PROSPECTS OF FURTHER COOPERATION 
ON CUBA POLICY, AS EVIDENCED BY THE PAST YEAR'S ACTIONS TAKEN 
BY THE EU AND BY ITALY. IMPOSITION OF THE TITLE III LIBERTAD 
ACT MEASURES, IN CONTRAST, COULD HINDER US-ITALY COOPERATION 
ON CUBA. 
 
VISIT ROME'S CLASSIFIED WEBSITE: 
HTTP://WWW.STATE.SGOV.GOV/P/EUR/ROME/INDEX.CF M 
 
SEMBLER 
 
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 2004ROME02517 - Classification: CONFIDENTIAL