"Our experience is that every time a foreign government gives in to the pressures of the totalitarian government in Havana, repression is intensified," the dissidents said in a letter released to the international press.

European Union nations agreed to reduce high-level governmental visits and participation in cultural events in Cuba following a government crackdown on dissidents in the spring 2003.

They also decided to invite dissidents to national holiday celebrations at their embassies in Havana as a sign of support for the island's internal opposition.

But some European diplomats have said the measures are ineffective and that it is time to improve relations with the Cuban government. On Tuesday, a meeting is scheduled in Brussels to discuss future policy toward Cuba.

"For us, a policy of any country saying it is in favor of democracy and human rights that at the same time accepts the demands of a government that systematically violates democratic principles would be incomprehensible," the letter said.

Dissidents who signed the letter include Martha Beatriz Roque, an economist and the lone woman among 75 Cuban dissidents arrested and sentenced in the 2003 crackdown. She was accused of working with U.S. diplomats to undermine the Cuban government.

Roque, who has diabetes, was released for health reasons July 22.

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