Should Guantanamo be given back to Cuba?

[America Needs R'hllor]

Yes. If the Cubans one day decide they want a US base in their territory as friends that's fine, but every country should have a choice in that regard. Their sovereignity and integrity as a country must be respected.

[America Needs R'hllor]

Why do all these people with avatars of American states think that America should voluntarily cede a valuable military outpost to an enemy state.  I get that anti-Americanism is popular and all these days, and everyone thinks Cuba is actually a cool place, but seriously?

I think you're woefully mistaking the mood. No one could mistake me for an ant-American. After all, I stand for the flag and kneel for the cross (NATO flag, NATO cross).

But the fact that we're mostly on the same side these days doesn't make liberals and neocons one and the same. Neocons are all about national interest this, our nation's enemies that. It just so happens that the national interests they view today include supporting liberal democracies. Liberals stand for values - freedom, human rights, a global rules-based order. As a liberal, I can't condone simply holding land that by all rights belongs to another country, unless there are real and extreme circumstances that make it a necessary evil. Cuba is a problematic country, but it's far from the worst, both in its hostility to the US (which could be much reduced with some bravery from US leaders) and its human rights record. There's no good excuse for Guantanamo.

[America Needs R'hllor]

Why do all these people with avatars of American states think that America should voluntarily cede a valuable military outpost to an enemy state.  I get that anti-Americanism is popular and all these days, and everyone thinks Cuba is actually a cool place, but seriously?

The Cold War ended in 1991 my friend

That doesn’t mean Cuba isn’t still an enemy. It is and it deserves to be treated as one.

Why?

[America Needs R'hllor]

Cuba is still an authoritarian country aligned with Russia and China. We have tried to reach out to them and all they did is take our help and gave nothing in return. It is not in America's interests to continue such a one-sided relationship. We will talk to Cuba again when they agree to democratize and agree to conditions aligned with American interests.

When did America tried to talk to Cuba seriously for the last time, save for Obama's short attempt before the end of his second term? Cuba being reliant on China, and especially a weak nation like Russia, is unnatural - some political bravery and smart negotiating can easily begin to turn it away from them. Its economic interests lie in America. While its government has a bad human rights record, it's far from the worst, even among America's allies, and the way to improve it is certainly not more of the same embargo that didn't work for the past decades.