U.S.-registered speedboat carried assault rifles, bulletproof vests, and camouflage uniforms.

On Thursday, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel addressed the incident involving a U.S.-registered speedboat that entered Cuban territorial waters and opened fire on coastal authorities.

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“Cuba does not attack or threaten. We have stated this repeatedly and reaffirm it today: Cuba will defend itself with determination and firmness against any terrorist or mercenary aggression seeking to undermine its sovereignty and national stability,” he posted on social media.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla also addressed the incident, emphasizing that “the defense of Cuba’s coasts, national territory and national security is an unavoidable duty.”

“Cuba has had to confront numerous terrorist and aggressive infiltrations originating from the U.S. since 1959, at a high cost in lives lost, injuries and material damage. A rigorous investigation is underway to clarify the facts,” he stated.

On Wednesday morning, Cuban authorities detected a Florida-registered speedboat that had entered the country’s territorial waters without authorization.

The vessel approached within one nautical mile northeast of the El Pino channel in Cayo Falcones, in the municipality of Corralillo, Villa Clara province.

When Cuban border guard troops arrived at the scene, members of the offending boat opened fire on Cuban officers, injuring the commander of the Cuban vessel. After the confrontation began, four attackers were killed and six were wounded.

After questioning the detainees, the Cuban Interior Ministry determined that the maritime incursion had terrorist purposes, that all members of the boat were Cuban nationals residing in the United States, and that many had a known history of criminal and violent activity.

Two of the wounded assailants were included on Cuba’s list of terrorists due to their “involvement in the promotion, planning, organization, financing, support or commission of actions carried out on national territory or in other countries, in furtherance of acts of terrorism.”

Cuban authorities reported seizing assault rifles, handguns, Molotov cocktails, bulletproof vests, telescopic sights, and camouflage uniforms. Authorities also detained another Cuban national who had been sent from the U.S. to ensure the reception of the armed infiltration.

The illegal incursion of the speedboat comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Havana caused by the U.S. oil blockade against Cuba, a measure that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has described as “contrary to international law.”

teleSUR/ JF

Sources: Minrex – RT – EFE

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