VENEZUELA: TITLE III OF LIBERTAD ACT

C O N F I D E N T I A L CARACAS 002268

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

PLEASE PASS TO WHA/CCA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/26/2017
TAGS: ETRD ETTC CU VE
SUBJECT: VENEZUELA: TITLE III OF LIBERTAD ACT

REF: A. STATE 158768


B. 2006 CARACAS 1096

C. CARACAS 694

D. CARACAS 597

E. CARACAS 844

F. 2006 CARACAS 3548

Classified By: ECONOMIC COUNSELOR ANDREW N BOWEN FOR REASON 1.4D


1. (C) In response to REF A tasking, Post sees no evidence
that the BRV has undertaken policies or actions to advance
democracy, human rights, or fundamental freedoms in Cuba over
the past year. On the contrary, President Hugo Chavez is
Fidel Castro's closest ally and has repeatedly and publicly
praised the Cuban government. Chavez has criticized
countries for commenting on the human rights situation in
Cuba. Post's response to Ref A. questions follow:


2. (C) What is the nature of investments (and names, if
known) that host country businesses have in Cuba?

As reported in Reftel B, state oil company PDVSA and
state-owned Venezuela Industrial Bank have offices in Havana.
In addition PDVSA has entered into a joint venture with the
Cuban Petroleum Company (CUPET) to refurbish and start
operations at the Cienfuegos oil refinery. According to
Cuban and Venezuelan press reports the refinery will open in
December 2007 and will produce 65,000 barrels per day of
petroleum. PDVSA and CUPET also agreed to conduct joint
studies in the Gulf of Mexico and other areas in Cuban
territory. On January 27, 2007 Cuba and Venezuela signed a
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the construction of a
joint steel factory, three oil and petroleum distillates
storage facilities, a nickel factory, and a study to evaluate
the opening of a power station in Cuba. We also understand
that Venezuela private sector companies operate in Cuba, but
we do not have a full listing of the companies or details of
their operations. We are also unaware of BRV entities or
individuals trafficking in confiscated property in Cuba.


3. (C) Are there any bilateral trade agreements between host
country and Cuba?

Yes, since January 2007, Venezuela and Cuba have signed over
42 bilateral commercial agreements and Post calculates that
these often vague promises of joint cooperation and projects
are valued at an estimated USD 5.72 billion (Reftel C).
Fourteen of these agreements were signed Oct 15, 2007 and
include petroleum exploration by PDVSA in Cuban waters,
construction of a fiber optic telecommunications cable
between Venezuela and Cuba, and the construction of a hotel
on a Cuban key. On February 28, during the seventh meeting
of the Cuba-Venezuela Intergovernmental Commission in Havana,
participants announced the approval of 355 cooperation
projects worth USD 1.5 billion, including an agreement to
build 11 ethanol plants from sugar cane (Reftel D). Chavez
appeared to rescind the ethanol deal on March 20, in order to
undercut the bilateral U.S. - Brazil ethanol agreement, but
we have seen no official confirmation of this.

On April 29, Venezuela, Bolivia, Cuba and Nicaragua signed
numerous agreements in areas such as oil, education, health,
finance, and culture to advance the Bolivarian Alternative
for the Americas and the People,s Commercial Treaty
(ALBA-TCP). ALBA is a trade agreement/Latin America
integration project that was created December 14, 2004 as a
Venezuelan and Cuban proposal to counter the U.S. sponsored
Free Trade Agreement for the Americas (FTAA). (Reftel E).

Presidents Chavez and Castro signed the Integrated
Cooperation Agreement (ICA) between Cuba and Venezuela on
October 30, 2000. Under the 2004 amended terms of the ICA,
Venezuela supplies 92,000 barrel of oil per day to Cuba in
exchange for the following services in Venezuela: dentistry,
optometry, diagnostic centers, rehabilitation units, medical
equipment and medicine. Cuba also offers services in the
following social missions: Mission Milagro (eye surgery for
the poor),Deportes Barrio Adentro (sports),Mission de Amor,
and Venezuela Adentro.

Contacts allege that BRV imports from Cuba sometimes bypass
customs and tax officials and enter Venezuela via military
ports. These items are reportedly not considered in official
trade statistics compiled by the BRV tax authority.


4. (C) Are there any exchange programs between host country
and Cuba, including but not limited to: scholarships for host
country nationals to study in Cuba; Cuban-paid medical travel
for host country nationals; and Cuban doctors working in the
host country?

Venezuela and Cuba have wide-ranging exchange programs as
noted in the previous paragraph. According to Venezuela's
Ministry of Communication, there were approximately 21,000
Cuban medical personnel working in Venezuela as of mid-2005.
Details on the Cuban medical personnel's activities in
Venezuela can be found in Reftel F. According to Cuban
government-controlled online newspaper, Gamma International,
2,400 Venezuelan doctors are enrolled in Cuban education
institutions. In January 2007, Chavez also announced plans
to send 100,000 poor Venezuelans on all-expense paid
vacations to Cuba. Venezuelans would travel on Cuba's
state-run airline Cubana de Aviacion.


5. (C) Has the host country, in Post's opinion, worked to
promote the advancement of democracy and human rights in Cuba?

No. Venezuela makes it a point to vote with Cuba and against
the United States in multilateral fora. In addition,
Venezuela staunchly defends Cuba publicly, including clearly
undemocratic practices that abuse the fundamental freedoms of
Cuban citizens.


6. (C) Have there been any high level diplomatic visits
between Cuba and host country in the past six months?

High-level visits between Venezuela and Cuba are frequent and
ongoing. Most recently, President Chavez briefly stopped in
Havana, on November 21, on his return from visits to Saudi
Arabia, Iran, France and Portugal, and spoke with President
Fidel Castro and First Vice President Raul Castro. Chavez
visited Cuba October 13-16, holding a four hour phone
conversation with Fidel Castro, broadcasting his "Alo
Presidente" TV and radio program from Santa Clara, attending
a pre-inauguration ceremony at the Cienfuegos oil refinery
and attending a signing ceremony with Raul Castro for new
economic accords under ALBA. Chavez is scheduled to return
to Cuba in December for the Cienfuegos oil refinery
inauguration.


DUDDY