[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 77 (Monday, May 16, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H2416-H2417]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1900
                           CUBA DRUG SHIPMENT

  (Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Homeland 
Security is currently in Cuba participating in bilateral meetings on 
law enforcement cooperation with the Castro regime. This will serve as 
another propaganda coup for the Castro brothers.
  In the past, the Obama administration and Cuba have held technical 
exchanges on counternarcotics. Yet, last month, Panamanian authorities 
intercepted over 400 kilos of cocaine in a shipment from--guess where--
Cuba en route to Belgium.
  This is not the first time that the Castro brothers tried to ship 
illicit materials. In 2013, Mr. Speaker, approximately 240 tons of 
illegal weapons were intercepted by Panamanians on a ship going from 
Cuba to North Korea. In fact, this shipment was the largest weapons 
cache ever intercepted going to North Korea in violation of several 
U.N. Security Council resolutions.
  So how does this happen, Mr. Speaker? Let's not forget that Cuba's 
military owns and operates Cuba's port facilities.

[[Page H2417]]

  So how does cocaine, how do shipments, and how do guns get onto these 
ships? I doubt that our deputy secretary will inquire about the 
complicity of the Castro regime in these illicit shipments when he 
meets with his Cuban counterparts. So shame on us, Mr. Speaker.

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