SUSPENSION OF TITLE III OF LIBERTAD ACT - URUGUAY

C O N F I D E N T I A L MONTEVIDEO 000290

SIPDIS

WHA/CCA FOR GABRIELA ZAMBRANO
WHA/BSC FOR MDASCHBACH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/27/2019
TAGS: ETRD ETTC PREL CU UY
SUBJECT: SUSPENSION OF TITLE III OF LIBERTAD ACT - URUGUAY

REF: STATE 48487

Classified By: CHARGE D'AFFAIRES ROBIN MATTHEWMAN
FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D)


1. (C) Upon taking office on March 1, 2005, the Vazquez
government renewed diplomatic relations with Cuba.
The GOU opened an Embassy in Havana on June 30, 2005, and
Cuba's ambassador to Uruguay was sworn in on November 7, 2005.


2. (C) President Vazquez in June 2008 made his only
official visit to the island since taking office in 2005.
Accompanied by the ministers of foreign relations,
agriculture, development, finance and public health,
Vazquez held official talks with Raul and Fidel Castro
and signed 14 cooperation agreements in the areas of
expanding medical, scientific research and social
development initiatives. During the visit, Vazquez
extended an invitation for Cuban President Raul Castro
to visit Uruguay in 2009.


3. (C) Overall, the GOU's involvement with Cuba is limited
to a few areas of medical and scientific cooperation. In
2005, the GOU accepted Cuba's offer to conduct
ophthalmological interventions free of charge for Uruguayan
cataract patients, under a program called "Operacion Milagro"
("Operation Miracle"). The program has now been terminated.
The Cuban government also offers scholarships for Uruguayan
medical students, with about 40 Uruguayan medical students
graduating in Cuba every year. Post is not aware of any
Uruguayan investments in Cuba or Cuban investments in
Uruguay, nor of any bilateral trade agreements between
Uruguay and Cuba. A Cuban literacy program called "I can"
was launched in March 2007, targeting literacy problems with
adults.


Matthewman