This is the best tactic yet on the part of Anheuser-Busch to fight off the takeover by InBev: accuse them of trading with the enemy.

A-B filed a suit this week accusing InBev of all sorts of sins in its attempt to take over our favorite south city brewery. But the best one of the bunch has to do with the Belgians' foreign investment.

It seems InBev has a brewery in Cuba. The New York Times quotes the suit as pointing out that the company brewed some 27-million gallons of beer last year in a nation that is, at least officially, an enemy of the United States. The Times' piece goes on:

"Under several U.S. laws — including the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, the Trading With the Enemy Act and the Helms-Burton Act — InBev would face a welter of legal issues in carrying out its promise to maintain St. Louis as its North American headquarters. According to these laws, the North American business could not participate in managing Bucanero, and InBev’s officers could even run afoul of Helms-Burton’s prohibitions of “trafficking in expropriated assets.” (The penalties would include failure to get visas to enter the United States.)"

Now, you can look at this two ways. On one hand, it might be just what A-B needs to chase of the acquisition attempt. On the other, should InBev still succeed in buying A-B, it could theoretically force them to pull headquarters out of St. Louis.

I would suggest the latter in unlikely to happen because Congress wouldn't allow it. Our relations with Cuba are already thawing. If the Helms-Burton act was going to lead to St. Louis losing A-B, it would probably be repealed. (Probably)

Regardless, its some pretty inventive lawyering to come up with the Cuban angle. A-B is clearly in this fight for keeps!