The Western governments continued to pay lip service to concerns about political prisoners and censorship, but in reality were appeasing the island's communist rulers, said Jonathan Farrar, the US head of mission.
The diplomat made scathing remarks about his colleagues shunning democracy activists, ''kowtowing'' to the Castro regime and joining what he scornfully termed the ''best friends forever'' camp.
''The Cuban government has been able to stonewall its independent civil society from foreign visitors who have, for the large part, been all too ready to give in to Cuban bullying and give up on these encounters,'' Mr Farrar said.
He named and shamed the countries Washington considers offenders in its battle, started half a century ago by President John F. Kennedy, to keep an international squeeze on the island.
''The Australian foreign minister, Switzerland's human rights special envoy and the Canadian cabinet level minister of the Americas not only failed to meet with non-government Cubans, they didn't even bother to publicly call for more freedoms after visiting Cuba in November,'' Mr Farrar wrote.
Farrar said those foreign delegations that shunned civil society activists and avoided mention of political prisoners reaped few dividends. ''For the most part the rewards for acquiescing to GOC (Government of Cuba) demands are risible: pomp-full dinners and meetings and, for the most pliant, a photo op with one of the Castro brothers. In terms of substance or economic benefits they fare little better than those who stand up to the GOC.''
The criticized governments are likely to reject the memo as an example of sour grapes from a country that has seen its Caribbean foe embraced by Africa, Latin America, Asia and increasingly the West. Even Washington's allies consider its embargo a cold war anachronism. ''Demented,'' as one European ambassador put it.
Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd met with his Cuban counterpart during a visit to the UN General Assembly in New York in September. Last November, former foreign minister Stephen Smith made a two-day visit to Havana, during which he met Cuba's vice-president Jose Machado to discuss developing scientific, cultural and business projects, according to local media.
Australia has consistently voted against the US trade embargo against Cuba in the UN General Assembly since 1993.
A spokeswoman from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said that Australia had raised human rights issues with Cuban interlocutors both bilaterally and in multilateral forums. The spokeswoman confirmed former Foreign Affairs minister Stephen Smith discussed human rights, among other issues, during the visit to Australia in June this year by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.
A spokeswoman for Mr Rudd said: ''The government does not comment on the content and veracity of leaked US cables.''
A government source said trade and commercial interests in Cuba are minimal on a global scale.
Meanwhile, another diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks reveals that Omar al-Bashir, the Sudanese President, siphoned as much as $9 billion out of his impoverished country, and that much of it may be stashed in London banks. The allegation emerged during conversations between US officials and the chief prosecutor of the international criminal court.
RORY CARROLL AND JESSICA WRIGHT
From: Port Lincoln Times
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