EU/CUBA: IRISH VIEWS

C O N F I D E N T I A L DUBLIN 000030 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2015 TAGS: PREL PHUM EUN SUBJECT: EU/CUBA: IRISH VIEWS REF: STATE 4900 Classified By: DCM JONATHAN BENTON FOR REASONS 1.4 B AND D (C) On January 11, POL/ECON Chief delivered reftel demarche to Margaret Stanley, Americas desk officer, and emphasized steps Ireland can take even though it does not have an embassy in Cuba, such as inviting dissidents to Europe and supporting their work in Cuba, supporting an EU visa ban regime targetting human rights abusers, and raising concerns with the Cuban mission in Ireland. Stanley said that Ireland is concerned about the human rights situation in Cuba. The Director for Latin America regularly meets with the Cuban DCM (the Cuban ambassador is resident in London),and recently called him in to urge that all dissidents be released from prison. Stanley is circulating U.S. ideas around DFA as well as with the Irish embassy in Mexico, which covers Cuba, and will touch base following GOI review. KENNY