US President Joe Biden notified the US Congress of his intent to lift the US designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism, the White House announced, as part of a deal facilitated by the Catholic Church to free political prisoners on the island.
Senior US administration officials, who previewed the announcement on the condition of anonymity, said “many dozens” of political prisoners and others considered by the US to be unjustly detained would be released by the end of the Biden administration at noon on Monday next week.
The US would also ease some economic pressure on Cuba, as well as a 2017 memorandum issued by then-US president Donald Trump toughening US posture toward Cuba.
Photo: AFP
The determination by the outgoing one-term Democrat is likely to be reversed as early as next week after Trump takes office and US secretary of state-designate Marco Rubio assumes the position of the nation’s top diplomat.
Rubio, whose family left Cuba in the 1950s before the communist revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power, has long been a proponent of sanctions on the communist island.
Trump has also appointed Mauricio Claver-Carone, a former White House National Security Council aide and strong supporter of sanctions against Cuba, to be his special envoy to Latin America.
In the final days of Trump’s first administration, on Jan. 11, 2021, the White House reinstated the designation, which had been reversed during the period of rapprochement between Cuba and the US during former US president Barack Obama’s second term in office. In doing so, the Trump administration cited Cuba’s support for Venezuela’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, and its refusal to extradite Colombian rebels to Colombia, among other issues, including its continued harboring of wanted Americans.
The move to designate Cuba by Trump was one of several foreign policy moves he made in the final days of his first term.
About six months after Trump designated Cuba as terror sponsor, the Biden administration levied new sanctions on island officials and the national revolutionary police after hundreds of Cubans were arrested during demonstrations in Havana and other cities to protest shortages, power outages and government policies.
Human rights groups and activists, including the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, have been pressing the Biden administration to lift the designation to ease the suffering of Cuban people who feel the impact of Cuba’s economic isolation.
US Congress and the incoming Trump administration would have the opportunity to review and potentially reverse Biden’s actions, although the senior US administration officials said the Biden administration had determined there was “no credible evidence” that Cuba was currently engaged in supporting international terrorism.
US Senator Ted Cruz quickly denounced the Biden administration move.
“Today’s decision is unacceptable on its merits,” Cruz said in a statement. “The terrorism advanced by the Cuban regime has not ceased. I will work with President Trump and my colleagues to immediately reverse and limit the damage from the decision.”
US Representative Carlos Gimenez, a Florida Republican, criticized the move and predicted that Trump would quickly reverse Biden’s decision.
“President Biden is a pathetic coward,” Gimenez posted on X. “Come January 20th, there will be a NEW SHERIFF in town & President Trump alongside Secretary of State @SenMarcoRubio will not only put #Cuba BACK on the list but PULVERIZE the regime once & for all!”
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