Cuba Rejects Comments on Castro

Cuba has criticized Costa Rican President Oscar Arias for comparing President Fidel Castro to late Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet.

In an interview last week, Mr. Arias said the two leaders had different ideologies, but both were "savage, brutal and bloody."

The Cuban state-run daily Granma quoted the foreign ministry as saying the comparison was disrespectful and unethical.

It said Mr. Arias is a "vulgar mercenary" and supports alleged U.S. plans to annex the Communist island nation.

As Costa Rican president in the 1980s, Mr. Arias won the Nobel peace prize for helping to negotiate peace in Central America. He was re-elected in a vote earlier this year.

By VOA News