Cuban intelligence agents have deep involvement in Venezuela, according to a 2006 US diplomatic cable released by Wikileaks.
Then-US Ambassador William Brownfield wrote that Cuban spies had "direct access" to President Hugo Chavez.
Another cable sent in 2010 said Cuban agents controlled spying operations against the US embassy in Caracas.
The left-wing governments of Cuba and Venezuela are close allies and outspoken opponents of the US.
The secret diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks were published by the Spanish newspaper, El Pais.
Similar allegations of Cuban intelligence influence in Venezuela have been made by Venezuelan opposition groups, but US officials have not publicly expressed such concerns.
The leaked cable from Ambassador Brownfield says the ties between Cuban and Venezuelan intelligence are so close that the two countries agencies "appear to be competing with each other for the Venezuelan government's attention". BBC News
