The Cuban government on Thursday criticized a speech by U.S. President George W. Bush on the situation in the country, calling his remarks a "decadent show."

Bush's speech was "irrelevant and cynical, and an act of ridiculous propaganda and bad taste," Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque said in a press conference in Havana.

Bush Wednesday presided over a ceremony in the White House to mark a "day of solidarity" with the Cuban people upon the 106th anniversary of the island's independence, in which he said Americans would be allowed to send mobile phones to Cuba.

Bush also promised to allow non-governmental and religious groups to donate computers with Internet access to the Cubans, hoping that the initiative will promote a "greater freedom of speech" in the country.

Cuba recently removed the restrictions that prohibited its people from having mobile phones, staying in hotels for tourists or buying DVDs and computers among other electronic items.

Bush said by sending mobile phones and computers to Cuba, the reform pledged by the new Cuban government led by Raul Castro would be tested.

(Xinhua News Agency May 23, 2008)