The United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) on Wednesday condemned the arrest warrant issued by a judge in Florida against Cuba's nonagenarian communist dictator Raúl Castro — reiterating support for their ideological mentors in the Castro regime.
Escalating tensions around Cuba could destabilize Latin America and the Caribbean, Moscow warns.
On Tuesday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement condemning the issuance of a U.S. arrest warrant for Cuban revolutionary leader Raul Castro. The statement reads as follows:
“We categorically reject and strongly condemn the issuance by a judge in Miami, United States, of an arrest warrant for Cuba’s historic leader, Army General Raul Castro.
The political and legal assessments of the events of February 1996, for which the Americans hold Raul Castro personally responsible, are set out in U.N. Security Council Resolution 1067, adopted on July 26 of that year.
The resolution contains no calls for measures to hold any individual personally accountable. This effectively means that the Council, including the U.S., agreed that this aspect of the incident was closed.
Bringing baseless, contrived charges more than 30 years later can only be seen as an act of revenge by Miami’s anti-Cuban lobby — an attempt to settle scores with Raul Castro, who celebrated his 95th birthday in June.
We wish to emphasize that further escalating tensions around the Island of Freedom, which is already enduring extremely difficult times amid an unprecedented trade, economic, financial and energy blockade, could destabilize the entire Latin American and Caribbean region.
A social upheaval in Cuba could well trigger a mass exodus of Cuban citizens to neighboring countries, potentially plunging them into a social crisis.
This court ruling might have been regarded merely as an expression of the sentiments of a particular group of individuals, were it not for the events in Venezuela earlier this year, when its leader was abducted in violation of all norms and principles of international law.
For our part, we reaffirm our unwavering solidarity with the government of fraternal Cuba, with which we will continue to strengthen our close ties of friendship, mutual support, assistance, and comprehensive cooperation.
We are confident that the indomitable Cuban people and their leaders will respond with dignity to this latest attack by foreign ill-wishers.
We wish Russia’s friend, Comrade Raul Castro, sound health and continued courage, bravery, and strength of spirit — qualities that have always distinguished him.”
A Sofia court has cleared European arrest warrants for two 19-year-old Germans charged with setting fire to Starlink antennas south of the Bulgarian capital, a court spokeswoman told dpa. Prosecutors named the pair in court, but both had already left Bulgaria. The case adds Bulgaria to a run of attacks on Starlink sites in Europe, which Poland and Lithuania have linked to Russia.
While Russia presses its assault along the front and strikes Ukraine’s cities, Starlink keeps Ukraine’s drone units and front-line troops connected, and Poland pays about $50 million a year for its terminals. The network’s ground links in Europe are now a target in their own right, and ISW has linked the Polish fire to a wider Russian pattern of sabotage. Each attack on a ground station hits a network whose speed caps already disrupted Ukraine’s drone missions this month.
Two names, a few hours in Bulgaria
Prosecutors identified the suspects as Zeka Islam and Tirpan Beytullah, Bulgaria’s state news agency BTA reported, noting the names may be misspelled. Their whereabouts are unknown, according to German authorities cited by the agency. They were charged in absentia on 14 October and face three to 12 years in prison if convicted.
According to the indictment, the two crossed from Serbia at the Kalotina checkpoint at 17:37 on 9 October and told border officers they were tourists. At about 22:25, wearing gloves and masks, they allegedly set fire to antennas at the Plana teleport, a satellite ground station near the village of Plana. They drove back into Serbia through the same checkpoint at 23:55.
Three antennas burned completely, two were partly damaged, and three more were affected, prosecutors say. The pair traveled in a Volkswagen with German plates, and a national warrant followed two days after the charges, ZDF reported.
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The court-appointed lawyers argued that investigators had pinned down the vehicle, not the men in it. The court rejected those objections, finding reasonable grounds to suspect the pair. The lawyers said they would appeal. The ruling can be challenged within three days.
A Starlink antenna. Illustrative photo: Christoph Soeder/dpa
An opposition MP made the fire public three days later
The fire became public only on 12 October, when opposition MP Ivaylo Mirchev of Democratic Bulgaria posted about it on Facebook. He said 11 antennas had been set on fire, more than prosecutors later counted.
In parliament two days later, Prime Minister Rumen Radev asked the head of the State Agency for National Security (DANS) not to reveal details, saying disclosure could harm the investigation. DANS head Plamen Tonchev told lawmakers he believes the fire was sabotage and that more such attacks cannot be ruled out, dpa reported.
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After the ruling, Mirchev wrote that Radev personally owes the public an explanation of what has been achieved, BTA reported.
Bulgaria’s case joins attacks Poland and Lithuania tie to Russia
Bulgaria has not said who might be behind the fire. Authorities in Poland and Lithuania have linked similar recent arsons on Starlink equipment to Russia.
In September, fire hit a Starlink ground station south of Warsaw, and Germany later detained two suspects. On 18 October, Lithuania’s prime minister said intruders had tried to burn a company’s Starlink antennas used by Ukraine, calling it part of Russia’s hybrid war. Moscow claims such accusations are baseless, Reuters reported.
German services detained two Turkish citizens on 12 October over the 23 September arson attack on a Starlink ground station in Wola Krobowska, near Warsaw, Poland’s Internal Security Agency (ABW) said. Both are suspected of arson, and Polish officials blame Russian intelligence. RMF24 later reported that German police also detained two more people who may be connected to the attack.
Poland is one of the main corridors for Western aid to Ukraine, and Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski has said Poland spends about $50 million a year on Ukraine's Starlink service. That puts Polish infrastructure in the path of a Russian campaign that already hacks cameras to track arms heading east.
Fingerprints, DNA, and a route out
The men were held under European arrest warrants and now await transfer to Poland. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński wrote that the suspects would face charges of “subversion, sabotage on behalf of a foreign intelligence service” after their transfer to Poland. Polish authorities issued European arrest warrants for the suspects, who were subsequently detained in Germany.
Działania @PolskaPolicja i @ABW_GOV_PL we współpracy ze służbami niemieckimi (BKA) doprowadziły do zatrzymania na terenie Niemiec 2 obywateli Turcji odpowiedzialnych za podpalenie stacji Starlink w Woli Krobowskiej. Zarzut-dywersja, sabotaż na rzecz obcego wywiadu. @CBSPolicji
Police chief Marek Boroń said investigators reconstructed how the suspects prepared the attack and fled. “We have secured recordings pointing to this specific action. We have fingerprints, the perpetrators’ DNA, how they moved, when they came to Poland, and when they were evacuated from our country,” he said. One suspect lives in Germany, and the other had been ordered to leave the country, he added.
Warsaw points at Moscow
Prime Minister Donald Tusk called the fire another act of Russia's hybrid war and promised the saboteurs will answer to Polish justice.
Na zlecenie polskich służb niemiecka policja zatrzymała dwóch obywateli tureckich podejrzanych o podpalenie stacji Starlink na Mazowszu. To kolejny akt wojny hybrydowej. Sprawcy sabotażu odpowiedzą przed polskim wymiarem sprawiedliwości.
“We have no doubt that Russian intelligence services are behind this act of sabotage,” said Tomasz Siemoniak, the minister coordinating Poland’s special services.
Those services increasingly turn to people tied to the criminal world, he added.
Two more possible links
German counterterrorism officers detained a woman in Berlin, and a man is also in German custody, Polish radio RMF FM reported, citing its reporter. Both may be linked to the arson. The woman allegedly picked up the Turkish men near Łódź after they entered Poland from Germany, then drove them to Wola Krobowska. The man’s role is still being examined.