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Clinton Urges Cuba to Unconditionally Release US Contractor

   David Gollust | State Department  March 04, 2011
   Judy  Gross, left, wife of US government contractor Alan Gross, and US
   lawyer Peter J. Kahn arrive to the courthouse where Gross is on trial,
   accused  of  'acts against the integrity and independence' of Cuba, in
   Havana, Cuba, March 4, 2011

Photo: AP

   Judy  Gross, left, wife of US government contractor Alan Gross, and US
   lawyer Peter J. Kahn arrive to the courthouse where Gross is on trial,
   accused  of  'acts against the integrity and independence' of Cuba, in
   Havana, Cuba, March 4, 2011

   Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has urged the unconditional release
   of U.S. aid contractor Alan Gross, who went on trial Friday in Cuba on
   subversion  and  spy  charges.  The 61-year-old American, held in Cuba
   since late 2009, could face 20 years imprisonment if convicted. Â
   Clinton  made  her  public  appeal  only hours before the long-awaited
   trial proceedings against Gross began in a Havana courtroom.
   Gross  faces  charges  of committing acts against the independence and
   territorial  integrity  of  the  Cuban  state  in  connection with his
   activities   in   Cuba  as  a  contractor  for  the  U.S.  Agency  for
   International Development.
   Cuba says Gross distributed satellite communications gear for Internet
   access under a U.S. program, begun under the Bush administration, that
   Cuba considers subversive and illegal.
   U.S.  officials  say  Gross was providing computers and cell phones to
   Cubaâs  small Jewish community to help it communicate with the outside
   world, and that his activities were not a crime.
   At  a  press  event  with  Costa  Rican  Foreign Minister Rene Castro,
   Clinton  expressed  hope  the trial leads to Grossâs early release and
   return home.
   âWe  also,  as  you  know,  are  deeply  concerned  about our American
   citizen,  Alan  Gross.  Heâs been unjustly jailed for far too long. We
   call  on  the  government  of Cuba to release him, and unconditionally
   allow  him  to leave Cuba and return to his family, to bring an end to
   their  long  ordeal.   It  is  a matter of great personal pain to his
   family  and concern to the United States government, so weâre going to
   hope that he will be also reunited soon.â
   Foreign  reporters  were  barred  from  the opening trial session, but
   Grossâs wife and consular officials from the U.S. Interests Section in
   Havana reportedly were allowed in.
   The two countries have not had formal diplomatic relations since 1961,
   but  have  interested  sections in their respective capitals, and have
   held  talks  in recent months on such issues as immigration and postal
   links.
   Clinton  and  her  Costa  Rican counterpart discussed regional issues,
   including  efforts  to  combat  drug trafficking, and a bitter dispute
   between Costa Rica and Nicaragua over the course of a river that forms
   part of their border.
   Costa  Rica  claims  Nicaraguan forces crossed into its territory last
   year  during  dredging  operations  in  the   San  Juan  river, while
   Nicaragua accuses its neighbor of âinventingâ a border conflict.
   The International Court of Justice is expected to make a ruling on the
   dispute  soon,  and  Clinton  said  the  United  States wants to see a
   peaceful resolution âin accordance with long-established agreements.â

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