Vanessa Bauza

HAVANA · For more than a year, a simmering spat dubbed the "cocktail war" has been waged in the grand old halls of Havana's European embassies.

Remember the Cold War? Well, this one comes with mojitos and canapés.

Some European envoys are now angling for a truce with their Cuban counterparts, but achieving it will require a delicate diplomatic dance.

It all began in June 2003 when the European Union decided to protest Cuba's crackdown on 75 dissidents by inviting opposition activists and political prisoners' wives to National Day celebrations at embassies in Havana.

The measure may have seemed a fitting show of solidarity when it was adopted unanimously in Brussels. But in Havana it smacked of subversion and quickly led to an all-out diplomatic freeze.

Two European embassies were the targets of a massive protest march led by President Fidel Castro, European diplomats were barred from Cuban government events and phone calls to their Cuban counterparts went unanswered.

Now Spain's new socialist government, capitalizing on its strong cultural and economic ties with Cuba, has spearheaded a review of last year's EU measures. The goal is to return to the long-held European position of engaging -- not isolating -- the Cuban government while at the same time supporting human rights and the opposition movement.

The policy of inviting dissidents to cocktail parties did more to infuriate the Cuban government than to further a peaceful democratic transition, Spanish officials in Madrid now say. Replacing the receptions with meetings for dissidents could be a more meaningful and less inflammatory alternative, some European diplomats in Havana think.

"The key thing we are looking at is how the EU can more effectively engage with the Cuban opposition and a wider Cuban society, including the government," said a European diplomat in Havana who declined to be identified. "Our view is that the June [2003] measures have served their purpose and there are ways of being more effective in a dialogue with the opposition."

Cuba restored formal contacts with Spain late last month in recognition of Madrid's efforts to improve relations. Days later, six ailing dissidents were released from prison in what was regarded by some as a Cuban gesture aimed at lending credibility to the EU's efforts, which are in stark contrast to the Bush administration's policies.

European ambassadors in Havana have been drafting their recommendations to be considered by an EU commission on Latin America, which meets in Brussels next week to analyze potential changes in the policy.

The six dissidents paroled from prison last week all expressed their gratitude for international campaigns on their behalf. Some said they supported more dialogue with the Cuban government in hopes of greater flexibility.

"Now is not the time for confrontation, but for dialogue," said Edel Garcia, an independent journalist released from prison on Thursday.

Oscar Espinosa Chepe, an economist who was also paroled last week, said he preferred engagement to the Bush administration's tightened economic sanctions.

"I think that kind of measure makes the [Cuban] government harden its position," he said.

Others argued that if the EU amended its policy before all 75 dissidents are free, it would send the wrong message. They say the invitations to National Day celebrations are more than a symbolic gesture and should be maintained.

"It's not about drinking a mojito with an ambassador," said opposition activist Osvaldo Alfonso, who was also released from prison last week. "It is about recognizing that these dissidents are not delinquents, as the Cuban government wants to describe them, but rather people with alternative political ideas."

Among the 25-member EU are differences of opinion on how to proceed. Germany and The Netherlands have indicated they want to see more concessions from Cuba before changing the policy. Only Belgium and Hungary have avoided being frozen out by the Cuban government over the past year and a half.

For the EU, the dilemma lies in reaching a consensus that opens up communication to the Cuban government while supporting dissidents.

"Across 25 [countries] there are a range of different nuances, but the broad debate has been around what precisely in terms of more effective dialogue with the opposition can we put in place ... [and] the likely Cuban reaction, which the EU cannot control," the European diplomat said.

Vanessa Bauzá can be reached at vmbauza1@yahoo.com.

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