PERU RESPONSE TO CUBA: COUNTRY BY COUNTRY REVIEW

C O N F I D E N T I A L LIMA 001898 SIPDIS DEPT FOR WHA/CCA DAVID MCFARLAND AND WHA/AND E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/04/2018 TAGS: ETRD ETTC PREL CU PE SUBJECT: PERU RESPONSE TO CUBA: COUNTRY BY COUNTRY REVIEW FOR SUSPENSION OF TITLE III OF THE LIBERTAD ACT REF: STATE 126578 Classified By: CDA JAMES NEALON FOR REASONS 1.4(b) and (d). ¶1. (U) Following is Post's response to reftel questions. PERUVIAN INVESTMENTS IN CUBA -------------- ¶2. (U) Post has not found any reliable data on Peruvian investments in Cuba. The vast majority of Peru's limited foreign direct investment is in Mexico, Bolivia, Ecuador, Central America, and the Cayman Islands. To the best of our knowledge, no Peruvian businesses participated in the Havana Trade Fair. TRADE AGREEMENTS -------------- ¶3. (U) Under the 1980 Montevideo Treaty establishing the Latin American Integration Association (LAIA),also known as ALADI, Peru and Cuba both belong to the Economic Complementation Agreement No. 50. Other member countries include: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuela. Peru and Cuba also hold a bilateral investment agreement. Trade between the two countries is minimal. From January to December 2007, the value of Peru's exports to Cuba totaled USD 2.3 million, ranking Cuba 75th worldwide in terms of exports received from Peru. About 75 percent of Peru's exports to Cuba consisted of: polymer plates, laminates, sheets, strips, bags, cones and adhesives; books, brochures and similar printed materials; and frozen, dry, salted or briny squid and cuttlefish. Peru imports about half a million dollars worth of products from Cuba per year, including rum, vaccines and medical products. PERU-CUBA EXCHANGE PROGRAMS -------------- ¶4. (SBU) In 1999 the two countries signed a Basic Agreement on Technical Cooperation, but little has been implemented under this agreement due to lack of financing and prioritization. In 2008, then-Health Minister Hernan Garrido Lecca signed several agreements to formalize Cuban medical support in Peru. According to one agreement, the GOP will provide funds in exchange for Cuban doctors and medical expertise. The Minister also signed an agreement to establish an ophthalmology center in Cusco. A third agreement allows a Cuban medical brigade that has helped Peruvian victims of the 2007 earthquake in Ica to remain in the country longer-term. About 40 Peruvian students study medicine and physical education in Cuba on GOC scholarships at any given time. GOP EFFORTS TO PROMOTE DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN CUBA -------------- -------------- ¶5. (C) Peru's leadership, including President Garcia, has taken an ambivalent approach to promoting a democratic transition in Cuba, and believe the current leadership situation -- with Raul Castro formally in charge and Fidel Castro still alive, presumably influencing events in some manner from behind the scenes -- is fundamentally sensitive. Garcia himself spoke out publicly several times during the year criticizing political restrictions in Cuba. He has also noted that incipient signs of a possible Cuban opening -- i.e., performance pay for public officials -- should be encouraged. At the same time, GOP officials emphasize that any transition process toward democracy should be led by the Cuban people and that attempts by outside actors to shape the outcome could cause a counterproductive backlash. HIGH LEVEL VISITS -------------- ¶6. (C) Peru's then-Health Minister Hernan Garrido Lecca visited Cuba in late April of this year -- the first such high-level visit in recent memory. Tentative plans for a follow-on visit by the Foreign Minister later in the year, to signal a thaw in bilateral relations and to encourage signs of incipient reform under Raul Castro, did not come to fruition. ASSISTANCE -------------- ¶7. (U) In the aftermath of the earthquake in August 2007, Cuba provided a trauma team consisting of 60 medical professionals and medical equipment to the cities of Ica and Pisco. The Cubans maintained two fully equipped hospitals during the mission. As noted above, elements of this mission have been formally allowed to remain in Peru longer-term in the context of a formal bilateral agreement. ASSISTANCE TO CUBA IN AFTERMATH OF HURRICANES GUSTAV AND IKE -------------- ¶8. (U) No information has been found on a direct offer or delivery of humanitarian aid; however, indirectly through the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA),Peru has pledged $10,000 of which some money may be directed to assist the Cuban people. NEALON