OBAMA MUSCLES IN ON PUTIN'S PLANS FOR CUBA

OBAMA MUSCLES IN ON PUTIN'S PLANS FOR CUBA
1st substantial discussions between U.S., Havana since 1956
AARON KLEIN

TEL AVIV – One day after a news-making handshake between President Obama
and Cuban President Raúl Castro yesterday, the two leaders are
reportedly set to meet for policy talks today, marking the first
substantial discussions between U.S. and Cuban leaders since 1956.

Largely missing from the national conversation about Obama's
reproachment toward Havana is that it comes at a time of growing Russian
political and military influence in Cuba, located just 90 miles from the
U.S. coast.

"As the United States begins a new chapter in our relationship with
Cuba, we hope it will create an environment that improves the lives of
the Cuban people," Obama told a gathering of civil society groups.

The president sought to frame the work to restore diplomatic ties as
moving past the old Cold War mentality.

"The United States will not be imprisoned by the past – we're looking to
the future," Obama said at the event today just before Castro took the
floor. "I'm not interested in having battles that frankly started before
I was born."

"The Cold War," Obama added, "has been over for a long time."

However, recent moves by Moscow to expand its influence in Cuba may be a
major factor in White House calculations regarding reproachment with Cuba.

In December, the White House announced renewed ties with Cuba including
the goal of reopening a U.S. embassy in Havana that has been closed for
50 years. The U.S. will also ease travel restrictions while making it
easier for Americans to do business in the country by, among other
things, permitting the use of U.S. credit and debit cards in Cuba.

Secretary of State John Kerry was also ordered to conduct a review of
Cuba's status as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The U.S. moves followed Moscow's recent muscle-flexing in Cuba.

In July, the London Guardian reported Russia had quietly struck a deal
with Cuba to reopen the Lourdes military base, a Soviet-era spy base and
military facility that was the USSR's largest foreign base during the
Cold War. The Soviets reportedly used the base to intercept American
radio and telephone communications.

Some have seen the base's reopening as largely symbolic, since spy
methods now rely more on satellites and technology that can be deployed
from anywhere.

The Guardian quoted Moscow-based defense analyst Pavel Felgenhauer
downplaying the reopening of the base as a "PR move" to show Washington
the "middle finger." Still, he allowed the base could be utilized for
corporate espionage, explaining "because when individuals chatter
they're not always so attentive of secure lines."

Robert Jervis, professor of international politics at Columbia
University, warned Russia could use the base to provide information to
communist allies such as Venezuela and Bolivia.

There is no mistaking the base reopening combined with other recent
Russian moves toward Cuba pose a challenge to the U.S.

It may in part help explain why, as part of the new rapprochement, Obama
is eager to open a U.S. embassy on Cuban soil. The facility will clearly
help establish a U.S. presence to check Russia in the country.

Last August, Putin paid a visit to Cuba, where the Russian strongman
reportedly forgave 90 percent of Cuba's unpaid Soviet-era debts, which
totaled $32 billion.

He also reportedly signed industry, energy and trade deals with Cuba
that includes a search for oil in Cuban waters.

Stephen Cohen, professor emeritus of Russian studies at Princeton
University, saw Putin's trip to Cuba as "a reply to Obama's notion that
Russia could be isolated, by saying, 'Hey, here we are back 90 miles off
your shore with a big greeting, and we're going back into economic
business here.'"

According to media reports, Putin utilized a Latin American tour in
August to sign numerous military agreements to place Russian global
positioning stations in not only Cuba, but also Argentina and Brazil.

In February 2013, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev reportedly
signed a deal with Cuba to lease eight of the country's Russian jets.

In a move undoubtedly watched closely by the Pentagon, in April 2013
Russian Military Chief of Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov reportedly toured
key Cuban military and intelligence sites.

Four months later, a spokesman for Russia's Black Sea fleet told
reporters the fleet's flagship, the Russian guided-missile warship
Moskva, would tour the coast of Cuba and Central and South American ports.

In February, it was reported another Russian warship, the Viktor Leonov
CCB-175, had docked in Cuba. These moves could potentially bring
thousands of Russian soldiers to Cuba.

Cuba seems to be relishing the U.S. and Russian courting, flirting right
back at both countries. Two weeks ago, Cuban Ambassador to Russia Emilio
Lozada traveled to Moscow, where he reportedly said Cuba is interested
in restoring economic collaboration with Russia back to Soviet-era levels.

Obama's attempts to restore ties with Cuba come as Russia has been
attempting to fill the power vacuum created by the U.S. reproachment
with Iran and the Obama administration's move away from Egypt and Saudi
Arabia.

Last month, WND reported Saudi Arabia has quietly reached out to
arch-foe Russia in an attempt to temper Iran's regional influence and
reach a compromise on Tehran's nuclear program, according to a Middle
Eastern defense official.

The Saudi move already has resulted in the opening of back-door dialogue
between the two countries aimed at possibly forging a new alliance, the
officials said.

The shifting U.S. regional alliances have seen Russia's military
relationship with long-time U.S. ally Egypt grow ever closer.

The Obama administration has been cool to the secular, moderate
government of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, which ousted the
Muslim Brotherhood and its Islamist allies led by Mohamed Morsi in 2013.

Ever since the U.S. abandonment of Sisi's regime, Egypt has grown
increasingly closer to Russia, as evidenced by the $3.5 billion arms
deal between Cairo and Moscow signed last year.

Last month, Egyptian Defense Minister Sidqi Sobqi and Russian Defense
Minister Sergei Shoigu announced in Moscow the expansion of Russian
military cooperation, which will reportedly include a historic joint
naval drill in the Mediterranean Sea.

Additionally, Egyptian soldiers and officers will reportedly train in
Russian military academies, reported the Moscow Times.

Now the purported opening of a new dialogue between Moscow and Riyadh
seems to continue the trend of former U.S. Sunni allies reaching out to
the Russian axis.

With additional research by Joshua Klein.

Source: Obama muscles in on Putin's plans for Cuba -
http://www.wnd.com/2015/04/obama-checking-russia-by-coddling-cuba/