Cuba officially broke ties with Panama on Thursday after the Panamanian president pardoned four Cuba-Americans accused by the Caribbean country of trying to kill President Fidel Castro.

"The relations between the Republic of Cuba and the Republic of Panama are to remain broken for an indefinite time, as the latter has proven unable to prevent the monstrous action done against the people of Cuba," read an official communique released in Havana.

The communique denounced the "shameful" ways adopted by Panamanian President Mireya Moscoso, who issued the pardon Wednesday night for the four US citizens with a long list of crimes against the island.

"This final action of President Moscoso, in conspiracy with thegovernment of the United States and the terrorist Mafia of Miami, only one week prior to completing her administration, is the culmination of the process of anti-Cuban terrorism," the communique said.

Moscoso was to hand over the presidency on Sept. 1 to Martin Torrijos.

Cuba on Sunday threatened to immediately break off ties with Panama if Moscoso pardoned the four exiles. In a response to Cuba's complaints, Moscoso withdrew her country's ambassador from the island this week and ordered the Cuban ambassador to leave.

The pardon, issued hours after the expulsion of Cuban ambassador, was called by Havana as "part of a maneuver to create conditions for the liberation of the terrorists."

The pardoned anti-Castro activists are Luis Posada, Gaspar Jimenez, Pedro Remon and Guillermo Novo. They were accused by Cubaof trying to kill Castro at a summit in Panama in November 2000.

Havana also accuses Posada of helping blow up a civilian Cuban airliner in 1976, killing 73 people, and of overseeing the bombings of hotels in Cuba in 1997, as well as "multiple assassination attempts" against Castro.

Posada has denied involvement in that airliner explosion, but once acknowledged overseeing the hotel bombings.

This pardon process, according to Havana, started in April, 2001, when Moscoso rejected Cuba's petition for extraditing the culprits for trial in the island.

"Cuba reiterates that the pardons granted by President Moscoso not only violate Panamanian law, but also international treaties against terrorism signed by Panama," the communique said.

"It constitutes an affront to the victims of terrorism and their families, and turns the President of Panama into an accomplice of terrorism and responsible for the impunity of the four assassins," it added.

"The president of Panama will carry a historic responsibility for this action, and will also be responsible for the new crimes these assassins could commit in the future," the Cuban communique read.

Source: Xinhua