Cuba arrests 17 for allegedly helping recruit some of its citizens to fight for Russia in Ukraine

HAVANA (AP) — Cuban authorities have arrested 17 people in connection with what they described as a network to recruit Cuban nationals to fight for Russia in Ukraine.

The head of criminal investigations for Cuba’s Interior Ministry, César Rodríguez, said late Thursday on state media that at least three of the 17 arrested are part of recruitment efforts inside the island country.

He did not identify the alleged members of the network but said they had previous criminal records. Some families started speaking up about the case on Friday, and at least one mother said that her son was promised a job in construction in Russia.

Cuba’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that the government had detected a network operating from Russia to recruit Cuban citizens living both in Russia and in Cuba to fight in Ukraine. It said authorities were working “to neutralize and dismantle” the network but gave no details.

downdaemon,
@downdaemon@lemmy.ml avatar

Not surprising that the tankies are avoiding a topic where a long term mostly-functional communist nation wants none of this capitalist Russian aggression

VentraSqwal,

I wish the US would get rid of that damn embargo so that Cuban citizens wouldn’t be so desperate to make money. It’s ridiculous, been going on way too long, and hasn’t fulfilled their goals anyway. People are dying as some political stunt to appease conservative Cuban Americans in a state that is in a fascism speed run with Texas. Democrats need to give up on that state and that demo and just do the right thing, like Obama started to before Trump made it worse.

library_napper,
@library_napper@monyet.cc avatar

Umm, what was their crime?

Madison_rogue,
@Madison_rogue@kbin.social avatar

Read the article and find out!

library_napper,
@library_napper@monyet.cc avatar

It didn’t say what crime they were charged with

Madison_rogue,
@Madison_rogue@kbin.social avatar

In Havana, prosecutor José Luis Reyes told state TV that suspects are being investigated for crimes, including being a mercenary or recruiting mercenaries, and could face sentences of up to 30 years or life in prison, or even the death penalty.

Plibbert,

Cuba is trying to stay neutral in the war. So there’s no state sanctioned recruitment channels. Meaning this is akin to hiring mercenaries, which is obviously illegal. Cuba, for obvious reasons, doesn’t like mercenaries, especially when it involves their own citizens.

library_napper,
@library_napper@monyet.cc avatar

Oh, I didn’t realize they were paid to fight.

Plibbert,

Oh yeah dude, same as the Ukrainian foreign recruitments.

jcit878,

good. take em out back and redecorate a wall with them. the Cubans they conned out of their lives won’t have the same opportunity for such a mercy

theodewere,
@theodewere@kbin.social avatar

17 guys is a pretty big recruitment ring to take off the street

eskimofry,

Technically its the biggest so far

tsonfeir,

Cuba definitely needs to keep its hands clean with regards to Russia lol.

Spacemanspliff,

Yeah there’s no way in hell they want to get remotely involved in this. I don’t know what capacity they still deal with Russia, I’m sure they are still friendly but they’ve also tried to make nice with the US over the years and giving Russia any kind of support against Ukraine is not gonna help that.

rockSlayer, (edited )

Modern Russia is not the USSR or the RSFSR. If there’s any political relationship at all, I imagine that it’s fairly poor since Yeltsin helped illegally dissolve the USSR and was the person that created the modern Russian Federation that we know today.

VentraSqwal,

Yeltsin illegally dissolving the USSR absolutely screwed Cuba. I’m sure they’re as friendly as they need to be to trade stuff they need, since that’s not coming from the US or their friends especially as Trump has increased sanctions, but like you said, I doubt it’s a close relationship at all.

Pili,

Cuba needs to do whatever it must to survive the US embargo.

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