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U.S. Tightens Travel Restrictions for Cuban diplomats in D.C. (Text) WASHINGTON (AP) - The government has tightened travel restrictions on Cuban diplomats working in Washington, the State Department said Friday. Officials based at the Cuban Interests Section will have to give the government 72 hours' notice if they want to travel outside a 273-square-mile area around Washington, deputy spokesman Philip Reeker said.

Previously the travel limit was 1,961 square miles.

The changes were made to conform with travel restrictions that U.S. diplomats have faced in Havana, Reeker said. They took effect Tuesday.

There was no explanation for the timing of the changes. The Bush administration has advocated a tougher line with Fidel Castro's communist government than the Clinton administration had.

The new restrictions will limit the free movement of Cuban diplomats generally to the area inside the Capital Beltway, the highway that surrounds Washington. That's roughly a 10-mile radius from the White House and includes areas of Virginia and Maryland. The Cubans also will be allowed to travel outside the Beltway to Dulles International Airport in Virginia.

Those wishing to travel outside the restricted area may do so by giving 72 hours' notice. They can travel if the government does not object.

There was no immediate comment from the Cuban Foreign Ministry in Havana or the Cuban Interests Section.

Cuba and the United States do not have diplomatic relations, so the interests sections serve as the equivalent of embassies. The State Department said Cuba has 25 diplomats in Washington, and the United States has 52 in Havana.

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