The U.S. State Department announced Monday (Jan. 11) that it has designated Cuba as a state sponsor of terror because the Cuban government has repeatedly supported acts of international terrorism and provided safe haven to terrorists.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement that the Trump administration has focused from the beginning on countering the resources used by the Castro regime to oppress its own people and to combat Cuba’s malicious infiltration of Venezuela and other parts of the Western Hemisphere.
With this action, we will once again hold the Cuban government accountable and send a clear message that the Castro regime must end its support for international terrorism and the subversion of U.S. justice,” the statement said.
“For decades, the Cuban government has fed, sheltered and provided medical care to murderers, bomb makers and hijackers, while many Cubans have starved, been homeless and without basic medications. Members of the U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (Colombian) National Liberation Army (ELN) traveled to Havana in 2017 to engage in peace talks with the Colombian government. Cuba invoked the peace negotiation agreement to deny Colombia’s request to extradite ten ELN leaders living in Havana. The group claimed responsibility for the January 2019 bomb attack on the Bogota police school (that killed) 22 people and injured more than 87 others.
“Cuba also hosts several U.S. fugitives wanted or convicted for political violence, many of whom have lived in Cuba for decades. For example, the Cuban regime refused to return Joanne Chesimard, who was on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Most Wanted list and killed New Jersey police officer Teroper Werner Foerster in 1973; Ishmael LaBeet convicted of killing eight people in the U.S. Virgin Islands in 1972; Charles Lee Hill, accused of killing New Mexico State Police Officer Robert Rosenbloom in 1971; and others.
“Cuba is back on the SST list for not fulfilling its commitment to cease supporting terrorism, a condition of the (U.S.) previous administration’s revocation of terrorism sponsorship in 2015.On May 13, 2020, the State Department notified Congress that it had certified Cuba under Section 40A(a) of the Arms Export Control Act for its 2019 counterterrorism efforts with the U.S. ‘Inadequate Cooperation’ with the
“The Cuban regime has engaged in a series of vicious acts throughout the region in addition to supporting the international terrorism that is the basis for today’s operations. Cuban intelligence and security agencies have infiltrated Venezuelan security and military forces to assist Nicholas Maduro in maintaining control over his people while allowing terrorist organizations to operate. The Cuban government continues to reach beyond Cuba’s borders to support the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the (Colombian) National Liberation Army (ELN); the regime’s support for Maduro creates a permissive environment for international terrorists to live and prosper in Venezuela.
“Today’s designation subjects Cuba to sanctions that (the U.S. government will) penalize individuals and countries that engage in certain trade with Cuba, restrict U.S. foreign aid, prohibit the export and sale of defense products, and impose certain controls on the export of dual-use items.
“The United States will continue to support the Cuban people’s aspirations for a democratic government and respect for human rights, including freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and freedom of association. Until those rights and freedoms are respected, we will continue to hold that (Cuban) regime accountable.”
Since President Trump took office in January 2017, he has reversed the policy of easing relations with Cuba pursued by his Democratic predecessor, President Barack Obama. Trump announced a new Cuba policy in June 2017 that restricts travel to Cuba by the U.S. population and limits U.S. business entities’ commercial dealings with Cuba’s military and intelligence services. Trump said these dealings would only make the Cuban dictatorship richer and that the U.S. would not negotiate with Cuba unless it achieved freedom.
The Hill reports that the Trump administration’s hard-line approach to Cuba could complicate Biden’s efforts to restore Obama-era Cuba policy.
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