Russian Destroyers Pull In To Havana

First Such Visit Since Soviet Era; Relations Warming Between The Cold War Allies

(CBS/AP)  A Russian anti-submarine destroyer and two logistical warships docked in Cuba on Friday, a thumb-your-nose port call aimed at Washington in waters just 90 miles from Florida.

The arrival extends a tour that included stops in Venezuela and Panama and shows Moscow's desire to flex some muscle in America's backyard. It comes even as President Raul Castro reaches out to the U.S., offering to negotiate directly with President-elect Barack Obama and proposing an unprecedented swap of political prisoners.

"That is Cuba's diplomatic specialty, playing both sides, or all sides, on every issue," said Daniel Erikson, director of Caribbean programs at the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington think tank.

Russian sailors in white and tan dress uniforms stood at attention on the deck of the Admiral Chabanenko destroyer, which chugged into Havana Bay amid a cloud of gray smoke. The ships will be moored here until Tuesday, and the crew planned a tour of Havana that includes a trip to a Cuban naval school.

"Cubans knew it was coming in and they were out there," said CBS News producer Portia Siegelbaum. "It caused great excitement here in the capital. The entire waterfront drive was lined with hundreds of people, and all the cars were driving along at the same speed as the destroyer as it sailed into the Bay of Havana."

A Cuban cannon fired a 21-blast salute that rattled the windows of nearby buildings, and a naval band waiting on a cruise ship dock played the Russian and Cuban national anthems. A hulking barge that frequently ferries U.S. food to the island happened to be waiting in the area but had to move to make room for the Russian warships. It was unclear whether it had any American cargo aboard.

Washington's nearly 50-year-old trade embargo prohibits American tourists from visiting Cuba, but the U.S. has allowed cash-only sales of its agricultural products to the island since 2000 and has long since become the country's largest source of food.

Erikson, author of a new book called "The Cuba Wars: Fidel Castro, the United States, and the Next Revolution," said he was not surprised to see Russian ships come to Cuba at the same time the communist government is promoting a thawing in its relations with Washington.

"Cuba has always been a country that wants to have its cake and eat it too," he said. "They want to keep the United States as the No. 1 enemy and at the same time benefit from U.S. travel and trade."

The Soviet Union provided billions of dollars in trade and annual subsidies to Cuba before its 1991 collapse. Relations soured after that, but the Cold War allies have become close again, with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visiting Havana in November.

Friday marked the first time Russian military ships have visited Cuba since the end of the Soviet era. About 100 Cubans - as well as tourists from Russia and other foreign destinations - watched the arrival from a nearby sidewalk. The crowd grew so large that police blocked off the right lane of a crowded boulevard adjacent the bay.

"This shows relations with Russia never deteriorated," said Eric Hernandez, a naval administrative employee who left his office across the street for a closer view. "Russia is a brother nation to Cuba, and Cuba has brother nations all over the world, despite what the United States wants."

But another onlooker, retired airport employee Jorge Fernandez, said he hoped the Russian visit wouldn't send Washington the wrong signal.

"The new president of the United States wants peace and tranquility with Cuba," he said. "This is positive for Cuba and Russia. But they might not agree in the United States."

The Russian ships arrived as Castro was set to return from his first state visit to Brazil, where he said Thursday he would consider releasing some jailed political dissidents as a gesture to opening talks with the Obama administration. Castro's trip also included a stop in Venezuela, where he met with U.S. critic Hugo Chavez.

Erikson noted that "the U.S. is important for Cuba, but it's not the only international relationship they're trying to manage."

"To some degree, the Cuban government says 'There's no way of knowing what the U.S. will do ultimately so we better have relationships with Russia, Brazil and China in our back pocket,"' he said. "It's hard to imagine Cuba saying 'We don't want Russian warships to come,' because they don't know what the U.S. will do."

The Russian ships' trip to Cuba has largely failed to register in Washington, but State Department spokeswoman Heidi Bronke rejected Castro's offer of a prisoner swap, saying the more than 200 jailed dissidents should be released immediately without conditions. Castro said the U.S. would need to release the so-called "Cuban Five," who were convicted in 2001 on U.S. espionage charges.

Cuban human rights activists also have panned the notion of a prisoner exchange, saying the jailed activists, independent journalists and political dissidents should not be used as bargaining chips.

In a statement Friday, the country's best-known political opposition leader, Oswlado Paya, called on Castro to free political prisoners without asking for anything in return, saying doing so "would be an act of justice for the people of Cuba, and is a moral and political obligation for the government."

[mrmeatspin]

the area around cubs is the wrong place for these destroyers..IT WORSE COMES TO WORSE..RUSSIA WOULD LOOSE..

how many decades had our US Navy been patrolling thisarea?? i think we are pretty much very very ready for this..

[apndrgn]

I will have to get a wetsuit upgrade for siberia

[apndrgn]

Ah yes. If wishes were dreams, russians would surf.

[niceface19]

Russians are ready to kick Bush in the face.

[karenlewis3]

Russians are human scum that needs to be shot www.theseriouspolice.com

[centerfall94]

"Russian Destroyers Pull In To Havana"

One more catastrophe under Bush''s watch. Way to go Bushie!!

[apndrgn]

Its an anti submarin3 craft. That means its a squealer. I wonder if their sonar is more damaging than ours to the whale populations. Hey, lets find out. Have a squealing contest and convert the cars in cuba and florida to run on whale oil. Maybe there aren''t any whales there, but it would be good practice.

[denn034]

This doesn''t bode well.

[whitemale08]

At least Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro would''ve never bowed down at the altar of ''globalization'' and sacrfice their ''sugar'' industry or ''oil'' industry so Anglo-American imperialists on Wall Street and the City of London can continue to loot them.

That''s why these clowns were put into power because their predecessors allowed Wall Street and the City of London loot them with IMF/WORLD BANK loans.

We may try and sanction them all we want but our grip on South America is slipping away...WHY?

Because the very same Wall Street and City of London is looting us too with these stupid bailouts. Soon we the IMF/WORLD BANK will force us to take their predator loans and ''finish the job'' on us too.

[spinproof]

The idea is FREEDOM!, BORN FREE!, FREEDOM OF SPEECH!, FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION!, FREEDOM OF CHOICE!, FREEDOM OF RELIGION!, FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT! and tolerance in those things in groups and others. Let FREEDOM ring!!!

[spinproof]

Cuba has an interesting way of electing their President, the current President just hands power to his brother, you can''t get any shadier than that, is that shady or what? lol Who will Pres. Raul Castro hand power to? Are there any more Castro brothers in line or will Cuba hold elections? Cuban leaders came to power by the "gun" and hold Cubans hostage by the "gun". If Cuba let their citizens travel legally, the Island would be completely empty in a year, no one would return! Cuba is a Communist prison camp!

[spinproof]

Chavez was elected legitimately by the Venezuelan people,

Posted by mtee12 at 12:44 PM : Dec 20, 2008

Unfortunately Chavez wants to cancel Venezuelan elections and implement a power grab and be President for life like the Communist Castro brothers! If the Venezuelan people fall asleep at the wheel Chavez will be President for life and Venezuela will end up Communist like Cuba stuck with Chavez forever! Chavez wants to throw away the Venezuelan Constitution and Venezuela should continue to reject that proposition!

[spinproof]

The US is not a democracy. The majority of Americans voteing, voted for Al Gore. In a democracy, Gore would have been president. I have no idea if he would have been better that Bush, but I cannot imagine that he would have been worse.

Posted by TangoUniforn at 11:43 AM : Dec 20, 2008

The American President is not elected by a majority of the popular vote which Gore did win, but is elected by the Electoral College, a majority of U.S. States!, as much as I don''t like the way Pres. Bush came to power because it was a little messy, Gore could have won if he carried his own State, not carrying your own State is a little embarrassing! If your own state don''t support you why should the rest of the nation? hmmm. Most candidates carry their own State regardless of Party affiliation!

[spinproof]

spinproof-love your insight into the Bay of Pigs debacle. You have learned well at the knee of the lib msm, grasshopper. Now, others would say that Pres Kennedy encourged the invasion, backed it to a point but would not give any air support to those he sent in.You know, sort of like failed Vietnam, and let''''s not forget our troops that were butchered in Somolia under clinton. So, that being said, yep, it was your typical democratic stab at "democracy".
Now, retort with all kinds of name calling but try and remember, I still am permitted to voice MY opinion.

Posted by Xlib at 11:00 AM : Dec 20, 2008

Pres. Kennedy had personal views and opinions and he had official views and opinions about Cuba, Pres. Kennedy knew how to separate personal from official. Pres. Kennedy did have personal views and opinions about Cuba and the Bay of Pigs he refused to implement "officially" because they were illegal. Some leaders implement their personal and religious views whether they are legal or not! This is the problem with Islamic Religious States, there is no separation between Church and State, no separation between personal and official which is dangerous.

[lewiston14]

Prop 8 is not on topic and has been reported

[downsteamjim]

mtee12: So Venezuela had been giving us free oil until Chavez took over. It is a shame that fact never made the news.

[lewiston14]

Part 2
No matter how slow or how painful Cuba is changing. They have to if they want to survive. As Fidel fades from memory the country can make great strides of change. We supply most of their food and if we wanted to push the issue we could cut it off. Would not make us look very good in the worlds eyes. What was 50 years ago is not today. You want ethanol guess who grows a lot of cane and other fuel crops we could use. OB should invite the new ruler of Cuba to the Whitehouse and see if things can be patched up some. Kennedy is gone, Clinton is gone, bush 1 and 2 are gone time for some real change. Did I mention I want to try one of them hand made Cuban cigars. Sure I could do it over the net but it would not be the same if you know what I mean. If we really want change put this idea on the things to do list.

[lewiston14]

So a Russian ship docked in Cuba so what. Some posted that is 90 miles from the US mainland. As if our navy is not parked in ports all over the world. The only thing a single destroyer could do in that 90 miles is get sunk was it to fire on anything of the US. A few weeks ago another Russian ship went through the Panama Canal. Last time I checked if you pay the transit fees anybody can use the canal. Making too much of nothing. Many talk like it%u2019s the 1960%u2019s again.

[tangouniforn]

The US is not a democracy. The majority of Americans voteing, voted for Al Gore. In a democracy, Gore would have been president. I have no idea if he would have been better that Bush, but I cannot imagine that he would have been worse.

[tangouniforn]

sockpuppet4
You forgot that Bush ran the greatest ponzi scheme the world has ever seen. He has borrowed trillions and trillions of dollars from our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren so as to distribute that money to his political allies.