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To: Hawkmoon who wrote (71502)	6/12/2001 5:11:57 PM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116779

CNS Top State Department Official Says China Has Been Delivering Arms To Cuba By Jim Burns CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer June 12, 2001 (CNSNews.com) - A top State Department official told a House subcommittee Tuesday that the Communist Chinese government has been delivering military equipment to Cuba. But James Kelly, assistant secretary of state for East Asian affairs would offer no other details, because he said he needed more information before he could comment on it any further. "We are very much concerned with this PLA (People's Liberation Army) cooperation and movement of military equipment in Cuba," Kelly said. The Washington Times reported Tuesday that China is shipping arms and explosives to Cuba - a sign of increased military cooperation between the two communist nations. The newspaper, quoting intelligence officials, said the transactions involve a "known Chinese arms dealer." The most recent shipment reportedly took place in December. U.S. officials told the newspaper that the arms shipments to Cuba could lead to economic sanctions against China. U.S. law requires the imposition of economic sanctions on any nation or company that gives lethal military assistance to a nation designated as a state sponsor of terrorism. The Cuban American National Foundation thinks the action is something that the Bush administration should take seriously, according to CANF Executive Vice President Dennis Hayes. "This is a trend that we have been concerned about for sometime," Hayes said. "It's clear that Castro is pitting his hopes on dealing not just with the Irans and the Libyas of the world, but also the Chinese who share his distaste for basic human rights. "I think it's a very alarming trend, and we hope that the United States government will take this threat seriously," he added. The newspaper said the latest shipment took place last December and coincided with the visit to Cuba in late December by China's military chief of staff, Gen. Fu Quanyou. Gen. Fu signed a military cooperation agreement with the Castro government aimed at modernizing Cuba's outdated Russian weapons. The paper quoted U.S. intelligence officials as saying that at least three arms shipments were traced from China to the Cuban port of Mariel over the past several months. All the arms were aboard vessels belonging to the state-owned China Ocean Shipping Co., known as "Cosco." Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.), a member of the House International Relations Committee and a consistent critic of China in the House, believes the communist Chinese "appear to be trying to position themselves to have leverage on the United States, throughout the world." "Whether it's in Cuba or whether it's in the Panama Canal or whether it's in the South China Sea, communist China is trying to have an iron grip on areas that are strategically important to the security of the United States and the western democracies," Rohrabacher said in an interview with CNSNews.com. He said China's efforts to establish a supplier relationship with Castro is "totally consistent with the communist Chinese belligerence towards the United States in general." Rohrabacher added, "I think that the new (Bush) administration should make it clear to the communist Chinese that they are either going to be our friends or they are going to be treated as our adversaries and our potential enemies. If they are going to be our friends, they have got to start acting like our friends. "Supplying weapons to Castro to put pressure on us is not what a friend would do. If they continue to move in that direction, there will be economic as well as political and military consequences," he said. cnsnews.com