CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
REIEASE DATE:2
the crisis ussr/cuba
as0
02
m
PREPARED FOR THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OP THE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL.
FURTHER DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS NOT AUTHORIZED.
SC No.22
CUBAN INTERNAL SITUATION
Castro'sovember letterhant expressing Cuba's willingness to accede to any Soviet decision to remove therom Cuba mayuznetsovalong these lines ln meetings later today with US negotiator McCloy. The new letter was publicized byHavana shortlyikoyan meeting with Castro, Carlos Rafael Rodriguez, and other Cubanfirst such official meeting known to have transpiredoveaber. The Castro-Mlkoyan meeting plus theletterhant may Indicate that Mikoyan is about to leave Cuba, although there is no reliable information to thla effect yet available.
The admission by Castro ln his letter that thebelong to the Soviet government" in effect eliminates Cuba from US-USSR negotiations over their disposition. At the same time the letter emphasizes those aspects of tbe crlsla which Castro regards as wholly Cuban: his refusal to permit inspection of offensive weapons sites and aerial surveillance. He makes no reference to his "fivehich suggests he has been unable to persuade the USSR to make tbea conditions for the settlement.
Removal of therom Cuba would reduceInventory of bomber aircraft to tbehich had been acquired under the Batista regime.
There was no photographic coverage of Cuba yesterday.
Cuban radio programs are charging that the US arrest of several Cubans for sabotage activities ln the United States la illegal and trumped up andwave of
persecution" by "repressive agencies" against bothand peace-loving Americans. They also featurethat Cuban Roberto Santlesteban was detainedin view of his "diplomatic immunity" and wasbeaten."
indicationeuters item ofovember that at least one flight, carrying two Cuban negotiators for the release of the Bay of Pigs prisoners, is scheduled from Havana to New York today.
BLOC REACTION
Moscow has not yet commented on Castro's letterhant on tbe removal of theombers. However, Castro's declaration was probably taken at Soviet behest and reflects Moscow's attempt to make US "fulfillment" of pledges on Cuba the main issue in further discussions.
Castro's letter stated that the US has made theof theombers on Cuban soil "the crux of the problem." Kuznetsov will probably take tbe line that the USSR, in agreeing to remove the, is meeting all US demands and is entitledimultaneous US guarantee not to invade Cuba. Moscow probably hopesromise to remove theill effectively cancel out the issue of inspection and verification.
Castro's declaration that he will accede to aof theill probably evoke even more direct propaganda attacks by the Chinese Communists on the USSR. Anovember People's Dally editorial attacked those "lackeys of US imperialism" who have sought to force the Cuban people "to accept terms which impair their rights and sovereignty."
BLOC MILITARY STATUS
No significant change has been detected in theposture of any major bloc command.
BLOC SHIPPING TO AND FROM CUBA (as0 ESTovember) f
There areloc ships en route to Cuba. Included in this total arery cargoankersassenger ships flying the Soviet flag, one East German dry cargo ship, and one Bulgarian tanker.
Four of the Soviet ships en route are large-hatch ships of the type previously used to carry missiles to Cuba. ifth such ship, the ORENBURG, was scheduled to arrive in Havana last eveningons of declared generalons of ammonium sulphate,eck cargo of aboutrucks. ixth large-hatch ship, the OKHOTSK, was scheduled to arrive at Havana onovembereclared cargo of steel billets and steel plates.
In addition to the OKHOTSK and the ORENBURG, therehird large-hatch ship, the BELOVODSK, at the port of Havana. The BELOVODSK has been there sinceargo of tractors, automotive equipment, machinery, and helicopters. The POLTAVA, the large-hatch ship which turned back onctober to avoid inspection at the quarantine line, now is en route to the Black Sea where she is scheduled to load grain for Cuba.
The other large-hatch ships in the Soviet merchant fleet are not currently active in the Cuban trade. The OMSK is en route to Japan. The BELORETSK and theare in the Black Sea. The SLAVSK is in the Baltic.
In addition to the ships en route to Cuba, there areoviet dry cargo shipsankers returning to the USSR from Cuban ports. Among these are thehipstheallistic missiles and associatedto the USSR. Six of the missile
DIVNOGORSK, FIZIK KURCHATOV, IVAN POLZUNOV, LABINSK, LENINSKY KOMSOMOL AND METALLURG ANASOV--are returning to Black Sea ports. The remainingALAPAEVSK, ALEKSANDROVSK, ALMETEVSK, BRATSK, andto ports in the Baltic.
The known cargoes and estimated time of arrival of the large-hatch ships now en route to Havana are shown ln the table.below.
STATUS OP LARGE-HATCH SHIPS EN ROUTE CUBA AS OF2
KASIMOV
KIHOVSK
ERA SNOG RAD
KARACHAEVSK
ons oftractors andonsons of oats, deck cargo of boxes believed to contain helicopters andrucks
tart of which is metals and other industrial equipment
Unknown amount of foodstuffs and
ons automotive equipment and deck cargo ofrucks; KRASNOGRAD-class ship on maiden trip.
Havanaov
Havanaov
Havanaov
Havanaov
-4-
TQP SiCRiT
Original document.
Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic: