Just how Global Affairs will adjust its diplomatic presence in Havana over the coming weeks is not yet decided, but the department is looking at cutting its staff in the country by half, to eight from 16. This latest case brings to 14 the number of confirmed cases — nine adults and five children.
Only essential consular functions will now be performed by personnel at the embassy in Havana, a senior government official confirmed Wednesday, to serve the more than one million Canadians who visit Cuba each year.
Responsibility for other embassy programs could be shuffled to other embassies in the region or to staff in Ottawa.
The latest case involves a diplomat who only arrived in Havana last summer, suggesting that the cause of the health symptoms — which first started hitting Canadians in 2017 — has not gone away.