BAHAMA,S PRIME MINISTER CONSIDERING VISIT TO CUBA

C O N F I D E N T I A L NASSAU 000710

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/06/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL BF CU
SUBJECT: BAHAMA,S PRIME MINISTER CONSIDERING VISIT TO CUBA
AS PART OF CARICOM EVENT

REF: A. STATE 105422

B. NASSAU 692

Classified By: Charge for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham informed
Charge October 4 that he was considering joining a "group of
his peers" on a CARICOM-sponsored visit to Cuba in December
(NFI). PM Ingraham said he had last traveled to Cuba "a
couple of decades" ago and noted that his Free National
Movement (FNM) party had unsuccessfully opposed the
Progressive Labor Party (PLP) government when it established
diplomatic relations with Havana in 2006. He nevertheless
said he intended to participate in CARICOM,s upcoming event
in Cuba.


2. (C) Charge responded by thanking PM for sharing his
travel plans with us. Noting that he obviously had not
consulted Washington, Charge said he was certain that at best
the US would be deeply disappointed if PM Ingraham were to
travel to Cuba. The US considered The Bahamas a close friend
but such a trip would be troubling. Charge noted that the
Cuban regime had taken no significant steps to warrant such a
visit by the GCOB. Further, Charge previewed Cuba demarche
(reftel) that Embassy Nassau was to deliver the following
week to the MFA. PM Ingraham listened without comment to the
message that the Castro government had rejected repeated US
offers of humanitarian hurricane assistance for the Cuban
people.


3. (C) Ingraham energetically stated that the "U.S. stands
alone on the Cuban Embargo" and told Charge that during a
meeting at the Oval Office, President Clinton had bluntly
told him that the embargo policy was based entirely on
Florida electoral votes. Charge replied that the
Administration was pursuing a principled and long-standing
bi-partisan policy toward a repressive regime. The Prime
Minister countered that that argument would be better if the
U.S. had not adopted very different policies toward North
Korea, China and other such countries. Ingraham added that
the times were changing vis-a-vis Cuba. He added his view
that U.S. Cuba policy would in any event look much different
after the November elections in the U.S. regardless of which
candidate won. The Bahamas upgraded its Consulate in Cuba to
an Embassy in July 2006.


4. (C) Comment: In post,s view, PM Ingraham likely has
decided to travel to Cuba and this was his way of giving us
an early warning. Until very recently, the PM had
deliberately kept his government at a distance from Cuba and
the GCOB even pointed this out during a visit to Nassau by
WHA DAS Madison in August. But after months of inaction,
Ingraham recently named a new ambassador to fill the vacancy
the GCOB had in Havana (ref b). To follow that up with a
personal visit would complete the picture of GCOB engagement
with Cuba. Dissuading PM Ingraham would be difficult,
particularly given the apparent CARICOM cover for the trip
and given his having moved on to the next Administration in
his political calculations. Direct engagement by an
appropriately senior Washington interlocutor might get the PM
to reconsider, but it would be an outside chance.
ZUNIGA-BROWN