Mysterious illness hurts diplomats’ morale – US — Analysis
‘Havana syndrome’ is making it difficult for the US to recruit diplomats, Foreign Service Association chief says
According to the American Foreign Service Association’s head, morale is at an all-time low among American diplomats. Washington can’t find enough people to fill its diplomatic posts abroad. The condition responsible is known as ‘Havana syndrome’, an illness that nobody can explain.
“People have suffered real trauma and real injury, and it has dramatically hurt our morale, our readiness, our ability to recruit new members in the foreign service,” American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) chief Eric Rubin recently told a medical symposium in Texas, according to a report in The Guardian on Friday.
“It is getting harder when we recruit people,”Rubin stated that his organization has nearly 17,000 diplomats and other foreign workers. “I’ve had young members of the cohort that’s coming into the foreign service ask me: ‘If I do this, what am I getting into? Is this only going to get more difficult? This is going to be solved. If I get attacked and if I get injured, who’s gonna be there for me?’”
But, it is not clear that someone is being assaulted. Havana syndrome first became known in Cuba in 2016. Those afflicted claim to have experienced vertigo (vertigo), hearing and memory loss and headaches.
Diplomats from China, Russia and Tajikistan reported cases. There have also been reports in many African countries. France and Switzerland may be involved. All those who were affected were American diplomats and intelligence agents as well military personnel.
Some politicians, journalists and intelligence agents have accused America’s adversaries – namely Russia and China – of causing the condition with high-powered sonic weaponry, but failed to provide any evidence to support these claims.
One incident occurred in Havana. A US diplomat claimed that he recorded sound from a sonic weapon, however, later research revealed that it was only crickets buzzing. The CIA reported last month that of 1000 cases of Havana Syndrome, no one could be linked with a foreign adversary. Most of the cases were ruled out as a result of foul play. Two dozen could have been associated with malign activities, but the agency stated that it couldn’t be proved.
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