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It emphasizes Cuba's geographical proximity to the Western World.

Just 0 kilometers from West Germany, there used to be a country with "strict exit visas", too. You can't get closer than that.

Used to be.

I would think a quarter century qualifies as "long ago" in the timescale of a single human life.

For dramatic effect, which is good, since language is a construct for human expression.

The name of the country is not nearly as important as its proximity to the US.

It is very effective writing.

I think they're intimately related in this context and disagree that it's proximity is important beyond it's identification, which, as stated above, is obvious.