On Monday (8), the Cuban government denounced a plan "prepared, financed and organized" in Florida, in the United States, to carry out terrorist actions and attack the Caribbean island. On Cuban state television, representatives of the Ministry of the Interior and the Cuban Attorney General's Office spoke about the foiled plan.
According to the Cuban government, the terrorist group intended to recruit people and illegally introduce weapons and ammunition into the country to carry out sabotage and violent actions. The plan involved 32 Cuban residents and a group of people based in the United States.
Authorities explained that at the end of last year, investigations by the Interior Ministry led to the arrest of Ardenys García Álvarez, a 40-year-old man of Cuban nationality. He has been living in the United States since 2014, after having been accused of theft and speculation in Cuba.
In November 2023, García Álvarez entered Cuba illegally by sea, carrying firearms and ammunition. He intended to "recruit people and start an armed uprising supported and financed by the US," explains the Ministry of Interior. Álvarez is currently in prison.
Despite attempts against the Cuban government, Ardenys García Álvarez is on the list of "political prisoners" compiled by Prisoners Defenders, an NGO based in Madrid, Spain. The organization is chaired by Cuban-Spanish businessman Javier Larrondo, who presents himself as a "human rights activist with extensive experience in implementing pro-democracy projects in Cuba, both philanthropic and funded by donations,” as can be read on the NGO's website.
The Prisoners Defenders' report is used by the US to justify Cuba's inclusion on "human rights violations" lists that allow Washington to implement unilateral coercive measures against the island.
Training
During the television broadcast, the Cuban government shared statements by Garcia Alvarez himself, in which he confesses that, in the United States, he had relations with Willy Gonzalez and Dayan Quiñones, representatives of the group that calls itself La Nueva Nación Cubana en Armas, a terrorist organization based in southern Florida, whose goal is the violent overthrow of the Cuban system.
Willy González is considered a bizarre and violent character, a kind of spokesperson for La Nueva Nación Cubana en Armas. On social media, he encourages the destruction of power plants and crops in Cuba to unleash an "awakening of the people". The organization has already sponsored attacks on schools, hospitals and power stations.
In the recorded footage, Garcia Alvarez said he took part with La Nueva Nación Cubana en Armas in two military training sessions organized on firing ranges. The night before the second training session, Alvarez says that, in the hotel where they were staying, a document was read out about the overthrow of the "Cuban regime" and the determination to use armed struggle, "putting the lives of a group of determined men at risk to save many others.”
Letting it happen
In the television broadcast, Colonel Víctor Valle, the second head of the Specialized Corps of the Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Cuban Ministry of the Interior, said that "the investigation has shown that this action was prepared, organized, supported and financed by a group of Cuban terrorists based in the US.”
He also explained that Cuba had reported these individuals to the US authorities, but they "did nothing about it," while these groups continue to "acquire weapons, train target practice and recruit people".
"These individuals continue to act with impunity on US territory, organizing, financing and supporting activities of a violent nature to subvert the internal order of our country," said Colonel Valle.
The US State Department confirmed it is aware of the latest allegations, but stressed that "US law enforcement pursues individuals on the basis of US legislation and does not receive instructions from foreign governments.”
However, according to UN Security Council Resolution 1373, governments are obliged to "exchange information following international law" and to "criminalize the wilful provision or collection, by any means, directly or indirectly, of funds by their nationals or in their territories with the intention that the funds be used to carry out terrorist acts.”
Last December, Cuba published its National List of people and entities linked to terrorism. This list includes people under criminal investigation for being linked to the promotion, planning, organization and financing of terrorist acts. The list includes members of La Nueva Nación Cubana en Armas operating in the United States.
"Our country has maintained a transparent, serious, cooperative and responsible policy in the fight against terrorism, and we will maintain our willingness, together with the people, the Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior, to uncover, confront and neutralize this type of activity," said Colonel Valle.
Fighting against terrorism
On the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel declared that "for some time, we have been warning the United States about terrorists in Florida operating against Cuba. However, they continue to act with impunity, which is what it means to be a terrorism sponsor state! Clear imperial cynicism.”
For years, Washington has kept Cuba on its "State Sponsors of Terrorism" list, ignoring growing criticism from the international community.
The purpose of including a country on this list is to cause economic, political and financial damage. To do so, it hinders access to credit and the international payment system, therefore reinforcing the dissuasive effects on third countries wishing to do business with the listed country.
Edited by: Rodrigo Durão Coelho
