Attack on Cuban Embassy in Washington, complicit silence

 

By: Alexis Bandrich Vega

TEHRAN, Sep. 26 (MNA) – Terrorism remains a serious challenge for the international community. It can never be eliminated as long as there are double standards, political opportunism, manipulation and selectivity when dealing with it.

The machine-gunning of the Cuban Embassy in Washington with an AKM assault rifle, with the intention of killing, is one of the direct results of the U.S. government's aggressive policy against Cuba, and tolerance and instigation of violence by anti-Cuban politicians and extremist groups based there. Cuba will never forget the long list of terrorist actions against our diplomatic personnel.

The United States Government must publicly acknowledge and denounce the terrorist nature of that attack that left more than 30 bullet hits on the facade and interior of the Cuban Embassy and share with Cuba all the information about it. Doing the opposite amounts to complicit, suspicious silence and tolerating terrorism.

The attitude of the United States government in this case is in frank contradiction with its counter-terrorism rhetoric.

While including Cuba on a spurious list of countries that do not cooperate fully with US counter-terrorism efforts, they do not recognize the terrorist nature of the April 30 attack on the Cuban Embassy in Washington.

They hide their long history of state terrorism against Cuba and the impunity of violent groups on their territory.

Instead, there is concrete evidence of Cuba's bilateral collaboration with the United States in the fight against terrorism and in joint law enforcement efforts.

Cuba has always expressed the deepest rejection and condemnation of all terrorist acts, methods and practices, in all its forms and manifestations by anyone who commits them, against whoever it is, wherever they are carried out; with any motivations, including cases in which States are directly or indirectly involved.

Cuba demands a worthy response from the United States Government and that steps be taken to prevent aggressions like these from happening again.    

Alexis Bandrich Vega is Cuba's Ambassador to Iran.