Chairman Mack on Cuba's Global Intel Reach

By House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Chairman Connie Mack (R-FL) in the Republican Study Committee's National Security Working Group:

Cuba, a Small Island with a Global Reach

Cuba’s ongoing relationship with terrorist groups, espionage and other acts of information warfare represent a serious national security threat to the United States and the region. The real threat in this case comes from a lack of public information, and therefore an insufficient degree of attention, focused on countering Cuba’s perilous global network.

The U.S. State Department’s latest Country Reports on Terrorism reported that Cuba continues to have ties to active terrorist organizations. Experts on various methods of irregular warfare have identified the Cuban regime as a trafficker of U.S. intelligence with illegal groups that utilize terrorist methods and with State Sponsors of Terrorism. The sharing of intelligence by Cuban spies has reportedly degraded U.S. counterterrorism efforts in the Middle East and elsewhere. According to the FBI, Cuban spies like Ana Montes have been “leaking classified U.S. military information.” Cuba also shares information and collaborates with countries that are established cyber warfare threats. A threat assessment published in 2000 by the U.S. Navy’s Strategic Planning Guidance, stated that, “Russia, China, India, and Cuba have acknowledged policies of preparing for information warfare.” Experts have also warned that that China “has a listening post of some importance in cooperation with Cubans” and has supported Cuba in “the development and use of sophisticated radar, early-detection, and anti-aircraft systems.”

According to Scott W. Carmichael, a former counterintelligence investigator for the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), “the Cuban Intelligence Service has penetrated the United States government” and is sharing classified information with U.S. adversaries like China, Russia, Iran, and Venezuela. The Cuban regime’s pervasive, global intelligence network, collection methods, and their willingness to share critical U.S. military and policy information to U.S. adversaries harms U.S. interests, military personnel, and the national security of the United States. This Thursday, May 17, I will be holding a hearing entitled, “Cuba’s Global Network of Terrorism, Intelligence, and Warfare” in Rayburn 2172 at 3:00pm, to shed light onto Cuba’s alarming activities and global capabilities.