Military

DATE=2/10/03

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=CUBA / U-S (L-O)

NUMBER=2-299441

BYLINE=MICHAEL BOWMAN

DATELINE=MIAMI

INTERNET=

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: Cuba is calling for the repatriation of four coast guardsmen who defected to the United States last week. From Miami, V-O-A's Michael Bowman reports.

TEXT: The leader of Cuba's National Assembly, Ricardo Alarcon, says U-S officials must send back, not only the coast guardsmen, but also the patrol boat the defectors used to cross the Florida Straits Friday.

The coast guardsmen landed at Key West, a tiny resort island off Florida's southernmost tip. The defectors, who surrendered to a local police officer, said they were patrolling Cuban waters, when they made a spontaneous decision to head for the United States. U-S authorities found the vessel docked at a Key West marina still flying the Cuban flag. Officials also found guns and ammunition.

Cuba says, keeping the men and the patrol boat would constitute a violation of bilateral immigration accords, designed to stem the flow of Cuban rafters taking to the sea in hopes of reaching the United States.

The U-S Border Patrol says it continues to interview the defectors. U-S immigration authorities in Miami have declined to comment on the matter.

Under a U-S policy known as "wet foot/dry foot," Cubans intercepted at sea are typically repatriated, while those reaching U-S soil are almost always allowed to remain, and eventually apply for U-S residency. (SIGNED)

NEB/MCB/TW