NEWS

House Foreign Affairs Committee

U.S. House of Representatives

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Chairman

For IMMEDIATE Release

Ros-Lehtinen Supports Continued Designation of Cuba as State Sponsor of Terrorism, But Says Administration Report Understates Threat

(WASHINGTON) – U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement on the Cuba section of the just released State Department’s Country Reports on Terrorism:

“Cuba’s continued designation as a state sponsor of terrorism underscores the severe threat that the regime in Havana poses to U.S. and regional security.  Cuba remains an active supporter and friend of extremists who hate and seek to harm the United States.

“Conspicuously absent from this year’s report, however, is any mention of Cuba’s longstanding alliance with Iran and other state sponsors of terrorism, the safe haven it continues to provide to fugitives of U.S. justice, or its ongoing espionage activities against the U.S.   This is deeply troubling and raises questions about a potential concerted effort by the Administration to exclude information to justify its weakening of U.S. policy toward the Cuban regime.

“It is my hope that the Administration is not manipulating information directly relevant to our nation’s security to advance its misguided approach to the dictatorship.”

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