The ghost of Cuba-Russia relations past was raised last
month by a news report that Russia might use Cuba as a
refueling base for its nuclear-capable bombers. The Russian
Defense Ministry later denied the report.
The security council, which guides Russian national
security policy, said in a following statement the two
countries planned "consistent work to restore traditional
relations in all areas of cooperation."
But analysts said Russia was a lot more likely to get
increased trade with Cuba than it was military cooperation.
"It's impossible to imagine that anyone in the Cuban
leadership would want to put their country in the bull's eye of
another superpower showdown reminiscent of the missile crisis,"
said Brian Latell, a former CIA analyst
"The military talk seems to be bluster on Moscow's part,"
Peters said. "Cuba has nothing to gain from a military
relationship, which would be high-risk and out of character
with the steady renovation of diplomatic relationships" under
Raul Castro.
clipped from: news.yahoo.com 