The U.S. Reduces Its Embassy Staff in Cuba by 60%

On Friday, October 7, the United States issued a significant order to evacuate more than half of its embassy staff in Cuba and warned American citizens about traveling to the country. Washington considers this action a response to "targeted attacks" that it claims have affected the health of American diplomats. According to the Associated Press, this decision will deal a major blow to the relations between the two countries, which recently established diplomatic relations after decades of hostility. An American official stated that about 60% of the embassy staff in Havana will be evacuated, and visa issuance for Cuban citizens will be indefinitely suspended. The current number of U.S. embassy staff in Havana is about 50. The U.S. government has also warned its citizens about traveling to Cuba, stating that mysterious attacks have occurred in hotels in Cuba, and although no incidents have happened to any American citizens so far, they may be at risk by traveling to Cuba. Tourism is a significant sector of Cuba's economy, which has grown in recent years due to the removal of some U.S. restrictions and sanctions. This American official mentioned that Washington is considering the possibility of expelling Cuban embassy staff in Washington, but no such decision has been made yet. Several members of Congress have urged the U.S. government to expel all Cuban diplomats from the country. The U.S. government expelled two Cuban diplomats in May but emphasized that the goal of this action was not to condemn Cuba but to criticize its failure to protect American embassy staff in Havana. Cuba has reacted to this U.S. action, calling it a "hasty" move that will affect relations between the parties. Ms. Josefina Vidal, head of North American affairs at the Cuban Foreign Ministry, stated: "We consider the decision announced by the U.S. government, as stated by its Foreign Ministry, to be a hasty move that will affect bilateral relations." Cuban television quoted her saying that "Cuba seeks active cooperation between the officials of both countries to resolve this issue." A year after the emergence of mysterious and unspecified physical problems among American diplomats residing in Cuba, the U.S. government still does not know exactly who or what factors caused these physical problems that have affected 21 diplomats and their families so far. Some of these individuals have suffered severe illnesses such as brain injuries or loss of hearing. Other physical symptoms include severe dizziness, vision and balance problems, insomnia, and extreme fatigue. Although the U.S. government has so far described these cases as "incidents" rather than attacks, on Friday, U.S. officials stated that the U.S. is now confident that these are "targeted attacks" against embassy staff in Cuba. U.S. officials say that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson chose the option of reducing about half of the staff among various options, including closing the embassy, and this decision was apparently made in consultation with the President. The Associated Press adds that the U.S. government communicated this decision to Cuba through its embassy in Washington on Friday. The Cuban embassy and its government have not yet reacted. According to U.S. officials, Cubans wishing to travel to the U.S. can apply for their visas at U.S. embassies in neighboring countries. Meanwhile, the U.S. will no longer send its officials to negotiate in Cuba, and these negotiations must take place in Washington. This U.S. action will significantly disrupt the normalization of relations between the two countries. During Barack Obama's presidency, diplomatic relations between the two countries were restored in 2015 after about five decades of hostility. Following that, the embassies of both countries were reopened, and some restrictions on travel and trade relations were lifted. The Trump administration has not yet held the Cuban government responsible for these attacks. U.S. officials have tried to balance the protection of their employees and citizens in Cuba with diplomatic relations with that country. Therefore, the U.S. government does not intend to describe its recent decision as a punitive action but will emphasize the responsibility of the Cuban government to protect American employees. Investigations by the U.S. regarding these attacks on the health of embassy staff in Cuba have not yet reached a clear conclusion, and the effects of these attacks vary among individuals. In some cases, they have affected concentration and speech ability, while in others, they have caused hearing loss, dizziness, and severe headaches. Initially, it was thought that these symptoms were due to a type of mysterious sonic attack, but after investigations by the FBI and other inspectors at the site of these incidents, the picture that has emerged has become more confused, making it impossible to reach a scientific conclusion based on current evidence.