Arrests Show U.S.-Cuba Cold War Persists
By CURT ANDERSON , 01.11.2006, 01:45 PM
By CURT ANDERSON , 01.11.2006, 01:45 PM
The arrest of two academics on charges of spying for Cuba was a stark reminder that more than a decade after the fall of the Soviet Union, the Cold War still rages between Fidel Castro's communist government and the United States.
"Maybe this is just the tip of the iceberg that we're seeing here," said Juan Clark, a Miami-Dade College sociology professor who specializes in Cuba. "I think Castro has been able to potentially infiltrate as many people as they wanted."
Carlos Alvarez, 61, and his 55-year-old wife, Elsa, both of whom had positions at Florida International University, were jailed without bail on charges they spied for Cuba for nearly 30 years. They could get up to 10 years in prison if convicted of failing to register as agents of a foreign power.
If the charges are true, the Alvarezes are the latest in a long line of Cuban spies operating in the United States since Castro took power in 1959. Cuba's state-controlled media had no immediate comment on the couple's arrest, and officials at Cuba's U.S. mission in Washington did not return calls.
Prominent cases in the past few years include the Wasp Network, a group of 16 operatives accused of trying to infiltrate U.S. military posts and spy on Cuban exiles, and that of Ana B. Montes, a former U.S. defense analyst who pleaded guilty in 2001 to spying for Cuba for 16 years. The U.S. government has also expelled numerous Cuban diplomats on suspicion of spying, most recently ordering 14 to return home in 2003.
Some of those cases involved military and intelligence secrets, including Pentagon contingency plans for Cuba and profiles of senior U.S. officials. But much of the spying involves Cuban exile groups in Florida that fiercely oppose Castro and work to promote democracy and dissent in Cuba.
"Of course we are a legitimate threat," said Manny Vazquez, a Miami lawyer who serves on the board of the Cuban-American National Foundation, a leading exile group. "We want democracy in Cuba. I hope we are a threat to Castro, in a nonviolent way."
Federal prosecutors say that the Alvarezes focused mainly on these exile groups, gathering information about the principals and what the organizations were doing. They also gave their Cuban handlers information about FBI agents and other federal officials, described the activities and views of South Florida politicians, and provided analysis of public opinion on Cuban issues, prosecutors said.
The couple did this while quietly working at FIU, Carlos Alvarez as a psychology professor, his wife as coordinator of a social work program, investigators said. They have five children between them, including a 12-year-old daughter.
No evidence has emerged that the couple passed any secret or sensitive information to Cuba. But U.S. experts said that does not mean the information supplied was harmless.
"They're here to watch us, learn about us and do damage to our organizations and the institutions we hold so dear," said former U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis, now in private practice in Miami. "Ninety percent of it will be mundane, unimportant information. But in one case, one person leads to another, and then you end up compromising somebody."
Although most exile groups advocate nonviolent change in Cuba, Castro has cause to worry about other elements of the Cuban-American community. Last year, for example, Luis Posada Carriles, an anti-Castro militant accused in the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner that killed 73 people, surfaced in Miami. And one of Posada's close associates was arrested along with another man on charges of possessing a cache of military weapons.
"There are some organizations that advocate sabotage and advocate action inside Cuba," Clark said.
Prosecutors said the Alvarezes were trained and given technology by Cuba's Directorate of Intelligence. This allegedly included a short-wave radio used to transmit and receive coded messages, and the use of post office boxes around the country to send and receive computer disks. Investigators said the couple brought information to Cuban handlers during visits to the island under academic cover.
The Alvarezes face a Jan. 19 hearing in federal court. Their attorneys indicated they would plead not guilty.
Prosecutors said most of the case is based on statements the couple gave to the FBI last summer as well as information retrieved during a search of their home and a computer hard drive.
Associated Press writer Adrian Sainz contributed to this story.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press.
http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/feeds/ap/2006/01/11/ap2443638.html
"Maybe this is just the tip of the iceberg that we're seeing here," said Juan Clark, a Miami-Dade College sociology professor who specializes in Cuba. "I think Castro has been able to potentially infiltrate as many people as they wanted."
Carlos Alvarez, 61, and his 55-year-old wife, Elsa, both of whom had positions at Florida International University, were jailed without bail on charges they spied for Cuba for nearly 30 years. They could get up to 10 years in prison if convicted of failing to register as agents of a foreign power.
If the charges are true, the Alvarezes are the latest in a long line of Cuban spies operating in the United States since Castro took power in 1959. Cuba's state-controlled media had no immediate comment on the couple's arrest, and officials at Cuba's U.S. mission in Washington did not return calls.
Prominent cases in the past few years include the Wasp Network, a group of 16 operatives accused of trying to infiltrate U.S. military posts and spy on Cuban exiles, and that of Ana B. Montes, a former U.S. defense analyst who pleaded guilty in 2001 to spying for Cuba for 16 years. The U.S. government has also expelled numerous Cuban diplomats on suspicion of spying, most recently ordering 14 to return home in 2003.
Some of those cases involved military and intelligence secrets, including Pentagon contingency plans for Cuba and profiles of senior U.S. officials. But much of the spying involves Cuban exile groups in Florida that fiercely oppose Castro and work to promote democracy and dissent in Cuba.
"Of course we are a legitimate threat," said Manny Vazquez, a Miami lawyer who serves on the board of the Cuban-American National Foundation, a leading exile group. "We want democracy in Cuba. I hope we are a threat to Castro, in a nonviolent way."
Federal prosecutors say that the Alvarezes focused mainly on these exile groups, gathering information about the principals and what the organizations were doing. They also gave their Cuban handlers information about FBI agents and other federal officials, described the activities and views of South Florida politicians, and provided analysis of public opinion on Cuban issues, prosecutors said.
The couple did this while quietly working at FIU, Carlos Alvarez as a psychology professor, his wife as coordinator of a social work program, investigators said. They have five children between them, including a 12-year-old daughter.
No evidence has emerged that the couple passed any secret or sensitive information to Cuba. But U.S. experts said that does not mean the information supplied was harmless.
"They're here to watch us, learn about us and do damage to our organizations and the institutions we hold so dear," said former U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis, now in private practice in Miami. "Ninety percent of it will be mundane, unimportant information. But in one case, one person leads to another, and then you end up compromising somebody."
Although most exile groups advocate nonviolent change in Cuba, Castro has cause to worry about other elements of the Cuban-American community. Last year, for example, Luis Posada Carriles, an anti-Castro militant accused in the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner that killed 73 people, surfaced in Miami. And one of Posada's close associates was arrested along with another man on charges of possessing a cache of military weapons.
"There are some organizations that advocate sabotage and advocate action inside Cuba," Clark said.
Prosecutors said the Alvarezes were trained and given technology by Cuba's Directorate of Intelligence. This allegedly included a short-wave radio used to transmit and receive coded messages, and the use of post office boxes around the country to send and receive computer disks. Investigators said the couple brought information to Cuban handlers during visits to the island under academic cover.
The Alvarezes face a Jan. 19 hearing in federal court. Their attorneys indicated they would plead not guilty.
Prosecutors said most of the case is based on statements the couple gave to the FBI last summer as well as information retrieved during a search of their home and a computer hard drive.
Associated Press writer Adrian Sainz contributed to this story.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press.
http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/feeds/ap/2006/01/11/ap2443638.html
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