HAVANA, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Cuba condemned on Wednesday the establishment of a U.S. "Internet Task Force" to spread anti-government propaganda, saying it is "aimed at subverting Cuba's internal order."
While the task force is charged with examining "the technological challenges and opportunities for expanding Internet access and independent media in Cuba," state daily Granma said, "in the past, phrases like promoting 'freedom of speech' and 'expanding access to the Internet in Cuba' have been used by Washington as a pretext for schemes to destabilize the country."
The U.S. Department of State announced Tuesday that it has created an Internet Task Force to promote "the free and unregulated flow of information."
The new maneuver revisits the "failed policies of the Cold War era," which the two countries tried to put behind them in December 2014, when then U.S. President Barack Obama and his Cuban counterpart Raul Castro announced their intention to normalize ties, the daily said.
However, current U.S. President Donald Trump is working to roll back the rapprochement by reinstating travel and trade restrictions the Obama administration had relaxed.
One recent example of such a scheme was the so-called ZunZuneo plan, uncovered by U.S. media in 2014. The message platform was created to sow discontent among Cuban youth.
If Washington's real goal was to improve life for Cubans, it would scrap the five-decade trade embargo that prevents the island from acquiring the latest technologies, the daily said.
The Cuban government has launched a program to expand Internet access across the island, especially through public Wi-Fi and home access.
Granma also cited a recent report, saying that the number of social network users in Cuba was growing the fastest.
