St Kitts: SUSPENSION OF TITLE III OF THE LIBERTAD ACT

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRIDGETOWN 000725 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/11/18 TAGS: EFIN PREL XL CU SUBJECT: St Kitts: SUSPENSION OF TITLE III OF THE LIBERTAD ACT CLASSIFIED BY: D.BrentHardt, Charged'Affairesa.i., STATE, Bridgetown; REASON: 1.4(B),(D) ¶1. (C) Responses keyed to reftel questions: - Has the host country, in Post's opinion, worked to promote the advancement of democracy and human rights in Cuba? No. St. Kitts and Nevis has not taken any steps to advance democracy and human rights in Cuba. - Has the host country made public statements or undertaken other governmental actions, such as resolutions in the national assemblies condemning human rights abuses in Cuba; or actions in support of civil society in Cuba through host country's diplomatic missions or other fora. No, St. Kitts and Nevis has not undertaken any such actions. - Have there been any high-level diplomatic visits between Cuba and the host country in the past six months? Yes, Cuban Vice President Esteban Lazo visited in July, 2009 to attend a Petro-Caribe summit meeting. In November, 2009 Governor General Cuthbert Montraville Sebastian paid a visit to Cuba at the request of Cuba's VP. - What is the nature of investments (and names, if known) that host country businesses have in Cuba? There are no St. Kitts businesses known to have investments in Cuba. - Are there any bilateral trade agreements or other cooperative agreements between host country and Cuba? Yes. St. Kitts and Nevis has active bilateral tax and investment treaties with Cuba. In addition, CARICOM has a trade agreement with Cuba that St. Kitts and Nevis has ratified. - 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 host country? Yes. St. Kitts and Nevis is the recipient of Cuban scholarships and Cuban-paid medical travel for St. Kitts and Nevis nationals in need of eye surgery. There is no wide-scale program to utilize Cuban doctors in the local health care system. HARDT