Base closure blow for Cuba

Castro's government has yet to respond to the closure

By the BBC's Daniel Schweimler in Havana

Russia's decision to close a once key radar base in Cuba has implications for the island - both at the economic and political levels.

It was once believed that the Lourdes station, which had long been labelled a spy station by Washington, would be a permanent fixture which tied Cuba and Russia.

But now, as new alliances are formed and old ones reassessed following the September 11 terror attacks, much that was taken for granted is being reconsidered.

Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted that the closure of the base, which lies within the 'footprint' of every US communications satellite, did not mean Russia was scaling down its relations with Cuba.

But the withdrawal of $200m rent - money which Mr Putin says could be better spent on launching military satellites - is certainly a blow for Cuba.

Bad timing

And it comes while the Cuban economy is suffering from the aftermath of the attacks on the United States.

Relations between Washington and Moscow are changing

Cuba's main industry, tourism, has been hit hard with thousands cancelling their flights.

The other main source of hard currency, money sent by Cubans living in the US, has dropped by as much as half.

The Cuban government has not so far commented on the closure of the site.

Intelligence experts say the base is still important to Russia but not as essential as it was at the height of the Cold War.

It is close enough to the US mainland, about 150 km away, to pick up wireless communications such as military radios throughout the southeast of the country.

The head of the Cuban armed forces, Raul Castro, once boasted that Russia obtained 75% of its military strategic information from Lourdes.

As a result, the most sensitive US government communications are encrypted.

On a visit to the base in 1995, a senior Russian official said the need for it was permanent, both for Moscow and Havana.

It is even thought that President Putin himself visited when he was in Cuba in December 2000.