For two months, the allegation that Cuba was hosting a major Russian spy base was largely ignored by U.S. media outlets. Then, on March 24, The New York Times published an article by Michael Crowley claiming not only that the Russian spy base exists, but that it “bristles with antennas and other eavesdropping equipment” capable of spying on the U.S. Central Command, the satellite launchpads of Cape Canaveral and Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.

Crowley pinpointed the location: a former Soviet base on the outskirts of Havana called Lourdes that was “temporarily shut” by Vladimir Putin in 2001 but was reopened in 2014, according to The Times.

There is just one problem with this story: the base isn’t there.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment. Belly of the Beast also sent requests to The New York Times and to Michael Crowley but received no response…

“They can say we’re a failed state if they want…but no one can ignore or deny the impact of the blockade,” said Luque. “A country like this little island, which has virtually no natural resources — we’re not a major oil-producing island or a country with abundant resources — if you don’t let oil in, naturally everything starts to fall apart. That’s what’s happening to us. But here we are. We keep going.”