American fugitives who have been granted asylum in Cuba will not be returned to the United States, Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez announced on Monday. This is in direct opposition to President Trump's demands on Friday, which included the extradition of American criminals. Rodriguez made these comments in Vienna.
BREAKING: Foreign minister says Cuba will not send fugitives back to US: "these people will not be returned."
— The Associated Press (@AP) June 19, 2017
Rodriguez said that he believes the United States was attempting to weaken the Cuban government, and said that the nation has no intention of negotiating "under pressure or threat."
He also said that the United States has "no legal or moral basis" to demand that fugitives be extradited to the country.
Cuba has offered asylum to roughly 70 American fugitives. The most notorious of these is Joanne Chesimard (who is better known by the name "Assata Shakur"), who escaped from prison in 1979 and fled to Cuba. Chesimard was convicted of murdering a police officer. She was the first woman to ever be placed on the FBI's "Most Wanted Terrorists" list, and there is a $2 million award for her capture. Despite her conviction, Shakur has a large amount of support in the United States, and is the subject of the song "A Song For Assata."
Join the conversation as a VIP Member