The Alliance for Cuba Engagement and Respect (ACERE) commends the Biden administration for its decision to remove Cuba from the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism (SSOT), as well to de-activate Title III of the Helms-Burton Act and eliminate the State Department’s Cuba restricted entities lists, as announced by a senior administration official Tuesday afternoon.
In conjunction, Cuban authorities have announced that, in coordination with the Catholic Church, Cuba will be releasing 553 Cuban citizens currently in jail following the nationwide protests on July 11-12, 2021 – an announcement that ACERE also celebrates.
In recent months, several former heads of state, former US diplomats and national security officials, and senior Democratic lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to remove Cuba from the SSOT list to alleviate the humanitarian situation on the island and curb irregular migration to the United States, which has surged since the intensification of the economic crisis on the island stemming from the SSOT designation and additional sanctions imposed during the first Trump administration.
In its decision, the Biden administration cited an appeal from the Colombian administration of Gustavo Petro in October and a direct request to President Biden from Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva in November as significant factors leading to today’s announcement, together with ongoing coordination with the Catholic Church and Pope Francis to secure the release of hundreds of imprisoned Cubans. Both the Biden administration and Cuban authorities invoked this year’s Jubilee as an important motivating factor for the Church’s involvement in advancing the pressing humanitarian issue of sanctions relief for the Cuban people and the release of prisoners from Cuban jails.
Throughout the Biden administration, ACERE has helped lead or support numerous efforts to raise concerns regarding Cuba’s SSOT designation and the impact of the Title III activation, which, along with the 62-year old economic embargo, have considerably stymied trade, foreign investment, tourism and financial transactions with the island, contributing to a devastating humanitarian and economic crisis in Cuba. Likewise, ACERE has consistently opposed the unilateral State Department lists, devised under the first Trump administration, that curtail Americans’ freedoms by restricting where they can stay, where they can eat, and what they can buy and bring home from Cuba.
Today’s diplomatic breakthrough is a positive step for U.S. national security interests and regional engagement as well as efforts to address the root causes of migration and strengthen the fight against global terrorism. ACERE celebrates today’s decision and urges the incoming Trump administration to continue to advance the interests of U.S. firms and citizens who seek to trade with, visit and invest in our southern neighbor, as well as engage in direct dialogue and negotiations with Cuban authorities to promote human rights, economic well-being and respect for political freedoms in Cuba.
