How does military intelligence function in Cuba and how is its organizational structure shaped? All this is discussed in our special analysis.
The Directorate of Military Intelligence (Spanish: La Dirección de Inteligencia Militar, DIM) is a specialized body within the structure of the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of the Republic of Cuba (Spanish: El Ministerio de las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de la República de Cuba, MINFAR). Its task is to collect and analyze information on the potential of the armed forces of other countries and to listen to and analyze electromagnetic signals (electronic intelligence).
DIM’s headquarters is located on the sixth floor of the building General Staff MINFAR at Plaza de la Revolución in Havana. Nearby is also Directorate of Military Counterintelligence (Spanish: La Dirección de Contrinteligencia Militar), functioning within the structure of the Cuban Department of Defense. According to information from publicly available sources, m.in. from the text by Alexander Stepanov from the Center for Analytical Research of the Institute of Latin America of the Russian Academy of Sciences, published in the magazine “National Defense” (Национальная оборона), the DIM is divided into four main sections and general sections.
Organizational structure
- Section I – combat reconnaissance
- Section II – operational reconnaissance
It consists of the following faculties:
- II-1: headquarters, secretariat and special security regime units;
- II-2: foreign intelligence, coordinating the activities of operational officers outside Cuba, divided by geographical region;
- II-3: internal intelligence, dealing with intelligence operations in the country (m.in. combating counter-revolution and organizing operational networks among the personnel of the US base in Guantánamo or on US territory);
- II-4/5: departments carrying out special missions abroad and on the island as part of interministerial tasks;
- II-6: Logistics Department;
- II-7: Communications Department.
In 1998. Section II underwent a restructuring process, resulting in some of the staff being transferred to other Cuban intelligence institutions.
Section III – intelligence analytics, which deals with the analysis of collected data. It consists of four groups:
- situational analysis;
- the United States;
- Europe;
- other regions of the world (Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East).
Section IV – Electronic Intelligence (ERI) – Responsible for conducting electronic intelligence, overseeing a specialized brigade capable of monitoring U.S. military communications on the island, in the region, and in the United States.
DIM structures also include:
- Special Security Regime Department, which ensures the secrecy of the flow of documents and office procedures,
- Department of Information Technology (dealing with cybersecurity and cryptology),
- Information Processing Department, responsible for systematizing and classifying the acquired data.
The education and training of DIM personnel is carried out as part of the Regularnego Kursu Akademickiego Wywiadu Wojskowego (hiszp. Curso Académico Regular de Inteligencia Militar por Agentura, CAREMA).
Collaboration between DIM and DI
DIM military intelligence cooperates closely with Directorate of Intelligence (Spanish: Dirección de Inteligencia, DI) Ministry of Internal Affairs, which has extensive operational capabilities. During the Cold War, the DI conducted a number of operations in the Americas, especially in the Americas and the United States. A special role was played in them by Antonio Maceo Assault Brigade (“Black Wasp”), which is under the operational control of DIM. This elite unit deals with combat reconnaissance and sabotage activities, distinguishing itself in foreign missions in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Priority: electronic reconnaissance
In addition to traditional intelligence based on personal sources of information (HUMINT), the Cuban intelligence community is consistently expanding the potential of electronic intelligence (SIGINT). Due to its favorable geographical location, Cuba has a unique capability to intercept U.S. governmental, military, and private communications, including satellite links between the AmericasNorthern Europe and Europe.
DIM controls one of the world’s most powerful signal capture and analysis centers in the city Bejucal, located 20 km south of Havana. This facility allows for extensive listening to key communication channels, from the White House and the Pentagon to financial and stock networks in the United States.
At the operational level, particular attention is paid to the infrastructure of the US base in Guantánamo Bay. Its central Naval Computer and Telecommunications Station (NCTAMS LANT) is an important component in the U.S. military communications network. The ability to capture information from this point represents a key opportunity for DIM in terms of electronic reconnaissance.
Guantánamo as a flashpoint
U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is an American facility located in Cuba. It was created as a result of the 1903 agreement, which provides the United States with the right to lease indefinitely. Up to 8,500 soldiers and civilians under the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) are stationed at the facility. It is in Guantanamo that since 2001 there has been an extensive American prison for terrorists. Separate areas of this facility are used by the CIA, m.in. to interrogate and recruit prisoners for potential cooperation. Therefore, DIM activities here are largely focused on electronic reconnaissance and attempts to penetrate the base’s telecommunications networks, which allows Havana to obtain information about U.S. military and intelligence plans and support operations to secure Cuban sovereignty.
“Black Wasp” – an elite assault brigade
The “Black Wasps” (Avispas Negras) are an elite unit with a long tradition, under the operational control of the DIM. The genesis of these special forces dates back to the 60s of the twentieth century, when, at the behest of Fidel Castro, commando groups with a “guerrilla” profile were established, modeled on the experience of the revolution and the fights led by Ernesto “Che” Guevara. The brigade has repeatedly conducted combat operations in Angola and Ethiopia, as well as in Nicaragua, Granada and Panama.
The specificity of the training of the “Black Wasp” is based on the tactics of small, mobile strike groups, capable of deep infiltration of enemy territory and organizing sabotage actions. Thanks to the experience gained in various regions of the world, the brigade maintains a high level of efficiency, developed, m.in in cooperation with instructors from Russia, China, North Korea and Vietnam.
International experience and cooperation
Both DIM and other Cuban intelligence services have been conducting missions in Africa and the Middle East for decades, supporting Marxist military groups there.
Cuban intelligence experts have also supported their allies in Latin America in Nicaragua, Granada and during Operation Condor, which targets independence and leftist movements in the region. Currently, DIM maintains a close relationship with Venezuela, helping to maintain President Maduro’s power
Due to Cuba’s strategic location and extensive experience in conducting electronic intelligence, DIM it also cooperates with the services of countries pursuing a hostile policy towards the U.S., especially Russia, China, Iran and North Korea. This cooperation became particularly important after the collapse of the USSR and in the conditions of the emerging multipolar world.
New impulses for cooperation between Russia and Cuba
Cuba’s historical contacts with the USSR and its legal successor – the Russian Federation – have been gaining importance again in recent years. In March 2023, he visited Cuba Secretary of the Security Council of Russia, Nikolai Patrushev, who met with both President Miguel Díaz-Canel and Raul Castro. During the talks, the topic of cooperation between the intelligence services of both countries in the context of threats from the U.S. and NATO was discussed, among m.in other things.
The vast majority of high-ranking officers of the Cuban armed forces and, above all, of military intelligence are graduates of the Moscow Military Academy of the Ministry of Defense, where there is a department dedicated to military personnel of the armies of friendly countries, including Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua.
At the same time, Russia has resurrected the Soviet spy center Lourdes in Cuba, which Putin officially shut down in 2001. In July 2014, the first information about new secret agreements between Cuba and Russia appeared. A radio-electronic centre capable of intercepting data from U.S. communications satellites, phone calls and messages from NASA’s Mission Control Center in Florida resumed work in the suburbs of Havana, writes The Insider. At one point, the military personnel numbered about 3000 people. That same year, Putin arrived in Cuba and forgave 90% of the island’s $35 billion debt. Then the current deputy head of the Council arrived there
Russian Security Dmitry Medvedev, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and other Russian officials. Under the guise of diplomats, GRU officers and graduates of highly specialized universities related to rocket science, computer technology and precision mathematics appeared on the island.
The Russian embassy in Cuba is a safe haven for the GRU, SVR and FSB. It is headed by General Pyotr Kulikov, whom The Insider’s sources call the chief GRU resident in Cuba. He is fluent in Spanish and English, and appeared in Mexico, where he headed the GRU outpost.
According to the Robert Lansing Institute, the Lourdes Radio Electronics Center (REC), located near Havana, is capable of intercepting traffic carried by U.S. communications satellites, eavesdropping on telephone communications, and intercepting messages from NASA’s Mission Control Center in Florida.
Visits and joint consultations in the field of security and intelligence take place regularly. In June 2023, the Cuban Minister of Defense, Army Corps General Alvaro Lopez Miera, visited Moscow, where the continuation of cooperation in the field of electronic intelligence and counteracting threats from American and NATO services was most likely discussed. In July 2023, the Russian training ship Perekop arrived in Havana, which aroused the Pentagon’s vigilance. The rapprochement between Moscow and Havana in the area of defence and security is perceived by Washington as a serious challenge.
In the 21st century, the United States intends to maintain a strong military and intelligence presence in the region, trying to influence Latin American countries. However, the involvement of Russia and China and the growing importance of other countries pose a challenge to American dominance in the region. DIM, along with other Cuban intelligence services, remains a key component of this process.
The Russians continue their efforts to destabilize Latin America by inciting conflicts and waging information warfare in order to weaken the position of the U.S. and its allies on the continent. Therefore, DIM together with special services from Venezuela and Nicaragua are an extremely valuable and effective tool.
