World IN BRIEF : CUBA : Soviets Cut Back on Technical, Trade Aid
The Soviet Union, while continuing to meet Cuba’s critical demand for oil, has sharply reduced its overall trade subsidy and is withdrawing up to 2,000 technicians--two-thirds the total of a year ago--according to Soviet and Western diplomats. Soviet Ambassador Yuri Petrov said 1,000 Soviet technicians have left Cuba in the last year and indicated that nearly as many may depart in the near future. The drawdown, set in motion shortly after Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev’s visit to Cuba two years ago, would leave about 1,000 Soviet technicians in Cuba, the lowest number in years.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
