Only days before he will leave office, President Joe Biden on Jan. 14 finally removed Cuba from the U.S. list of “State Sponsors of Terrorism” (SSOT). Designating Cuba as a terrorist state has long been a part of the U.S. blockade against the socialist country, imposing specific coercive measures on trade and imports.
President Barack Obama had previously removed the designation, in 2017, but Donald Trump restored it on Jan. 11, 2021, at the very end of his first term. It is widely expected that Trump may reimpose the SSOT label during his second term, likely undermining the practical effect of Biden’s decision.
In Havana, the Cuban Foreign Ministry greeted the announcement, saying that “despite its limited nature, this is a decision in the right direction.” The government emphasized, however, that the U.S.’ “continuing economic war is still the fundamental obstacle to the development and recovery” of Cuba.
Tightened the blockade’s impact
Cuba’s assignment to SSOT list had constituted a major part of the U.S.’ economic blockade of Cuba—the so-called “embargo”—which has been in effect for over six decades. The SSOT designation has contributed mightily to shortages of money, goods, and supplies in Cuba that add up to sustain a festering humanitarian crisis.
The designation requires that international financial institutions not use U.S. dollars in transactions involving Cuba; the use of U.S. dollars is targeted because they are the dominant currency in international monetary dealings and trade. Consequently, the flow to Cuba of loans, payments on account, and agency funding from abroad has slowed to a trickle.
Removal of the SSOT designation comes after the Biden administration in May removed Cuba from the State Department’s short list of countries that it deems less than fully cooperative against violent groups.
Over the course of its four-year term, the Biden White House faced a steady onslaught of demands that the SSOT designation be ended. They came from congresspersons, the United Nations, political advocacy groups worldwide, U.S. political activists, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and nations of the world, particularly in Latin America.
The refrain, cropping up repeatedly, was that Biden could end the designation “with the stroke of a pen.” That did not happen until now. Appeals from Colombia’s government were central to the outcome, according to an informed People’s World source.
Biden took other actions in addition to stripping the SSOT designation. He also announced that the U.S. government would no longer enforce Title III of the 1996 Helms-Burton Law. Under this provision, U.S. citizens, Cuban émigrés among them, may appeal to U.S. courts to gain relief from the use by foreign individuals and companies of properties once belonging to their families, ones that had been nationalized by Cuba’s government.
There had been no enforcement of Title III until President Donald Trump did so in 2019. The impact of enforcement has been to add further precariousness to foreign investments in Cuba as many international companies became more reluctant to sink money into Cuba.
The Biden administration also eliminated measures put in force by Trump in 2017 prohibiting U.S. tourists and organizations from paying for a wide range of specified services in Cuba. Their overall purpose had been to cut back on income received by Cuba’s government.
In announcing these new measures, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre referred to “ongoing dialogue between the government of Cuba and the Catholic Church.” She was suggesting that the latter had facilitated the Biden administration’s decision to end the SSOT designation.
In its reporting on the new development, Cuba’s Foreign Affairs Ministry mentioned that Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez and President Miguel Díaz-Canel had brought Cuba’s SSOT designation to the attention of Pope Francis when they met with him in 2022 and 2023, respectively.
The Ministry also indicated that Díaz-Canel recently communicated with the Pope, informing him that, “in the spirit if the ‘Ordinary Jubilee’ of 2025” (during which universal pardon is celebrated), Cuba’s government would soon be releasing 553 prisoners charged with various crimes.
Right recoils
The Trump transition team did not immediately comment on the Biden administration’s announcement.
However, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, proclaimed: “Today’s decision is unacceptable on its merits … The terrorism advanced by the Cuban regime has not ceased.”
He pledged to “work with President Trump and my colleagues to immediately reverse and limit the damage from the decision.”
In a social media post, Florida Republican Rep. Carlos Giménez added: “President Biden is a pathetic coward… Come January 20th, there will be a new sheriff in town and President Trump alongside Secretary of State [Rubio] will not only put [Cuba] back on the list but pulverize the regime once and for all!”
Better late than never
In stark contrast to the cheerleading for Cuban suffering evident on the right, the reaction among organizations that stand in solidarity with Cuba combined tempered celebration with demands that the full blockade be lifted.
The Communist Party USA welcomed the “long overdue removal” of Cuba from the SSOT list and said it represents a “significant step toward justice.” The CPUSA attributed the achievement to “years of struggle by the Cuban people, the international community, and broad sections of…democratic, labor, civil rights, and communist organizations around the globe.”
Biden was criticized for taking “practically his full term to remove this shameful designation, despite making a campaign promise to remove Cuba from the list when elected in 2020.”
Pointing to the crippling effects of the blockade and the aggressive anti-Cuba stances of Sen. Mark Rubio, Trump’s Secretary of State appointee, the CPUSA encouraged peace supporters to rally in opposition to his confirmation and continue working to mobilize a coalition against the blockade.
The anti-war women’s group CODEPINK also hailed the change in policy, but said it was “unacceptable” that it took the administration four years to do it. “President Biden made the inhumane decision every single day to not alleviate the suffering of millions of Cubans by keeping this designation in place,” the organization said in a statement issued late Tuesday.
The director of international policy at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, Alex Main, said Biden’s decision is “better late than never,” but argued that “sixty years of failed policy” should have been enough to convince U.S. officials to change their approach to Cuba long ago.
Several lawmakers in Washington praised the change and seconded the call for further relaxation of the U.S.’ coercive economic measures.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., called the change “a step toward ending decades of failed policy that has only hurt Cuban families and strained diplomatic ties.” She said removing the SSOT designation would create new opportunities for trade and cooperation between the U.S. and Cuba.
New York Rep. Nydia Velázquez said labeling Cuba a terrorist state did nothing to advance U.S. interests and only made it harder for Cubans to access humanitarian aid, banking services, and other needs.
“It has also deepened food and medicine shortages and worsened the island’s energy crisis, especially after Hurricane Rafael,” she said, pointing to the electricity blackouts and waves of outward migration in recent months.
Back in Havana, the Foreign Ministry said that this correction should have happened years ago and that the ongoing economic war against Cuba must end. Despite the continued U.S. aggression, though, Cuba said it “remains willing to develop a relationship of respect” with the U.S. government, “based on dialogue and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs.”
C.J. Atkins contributed to this article.
We hope you appreciated this article. At People’s World, we believe news and information should be free and accessible to all, but we need your help. Our journalism is free of corporate influence and paywalls because we are totally reader-supported. Only you, our readers and supporters, make this possible. If you enjoy reading People’s World and the stories we bring you, please support our work by donating or becoming a monthly sustainer today. Thank you!
CONTRIBUTOR
Comments