Ever since President Trump added Cuba to the state sponsors of terrorism list, Cuba’s economy has suffered as most banks worldwide would not risk interacting with Cuba or Cubans for fear of fines. In addition to over 60 years of the genocidal US blockade, the listing made trade and banking even more difficult for Cuba. By locking Cuba out of the international financial system, the US ensured shortages of food, fuel and medicine and scarcities in every sector. It is for this reason that President Biden’s surprising removal of Cuba from the list should be celebrated as a victory for the Cuban people and all those around the world who stand for justice and self-determination.
This reversal comes with the additional good news of the suspension of Title III of the Helms Burton Act, which allows US companies to legally attack foreign companies that trade with nationalised Cuban properties, and the elimination of the list of ‘restricted entities' with which financial transactions are prohibited for US companies or individuals.
In a statement signed by Biden released today, the White House states that ‘The Government of Cuba has not provided any support for international terrorism during the preceding 6-month period’. Cuba has not supported international terrorism at all of course, not now or 4 years ago when they were put on the list in the first place. The US is not in a position to judge any other country when it comes to supporting terroristic organisations and tactics.
Throughout his presidency, Biden has not only kept the destructive policies introduced by Trump in place but has added additional sanctions to the US blockade. He has made it clear that he supported Cuba’s inclusion on the list and sought to ramp up the economic warfare against the island. Several Latin American heads of state have stepped up their support for Cuba and demanded that they be removed from the list. It is thanks to these declarations of support and the effort of countless activists, campaigns and organisations around the world that this policy has been partially reversed.
The timing of this move must not be ignored. Biden has waited until the last possible moment to make this change, meaning that Cubans have unnecessarily suffered this cruel policy for 4 years. It also leaves the door open for the incoming Trump administration, with the new Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to ramp up the blockade or put Cuba back on the list.
For activists in Europe there is now a clear target: the US’ visa waiver programme, ESTA. ESTA allows travellers from a list of European countries to travel to the US without a visa, but since 2021 persons who travelled to Cuba since it was added to the state sponsors of terrorism list are ineligible for the waiver, meaning that they must obtain a visa from the US embassy, which can take months. This has affected upwards of 300,000 European tourists, upon which the Cuban economy is partially reliant. Now that Cuba is off the list it is up to us to demand that this restriction be removed from the ESTA programme as well!
The White House’s announcement was simultaneous with a statement from the Cuban government that they will ensure the release of prisoners currently held for breaking the law in Cuba. MINREX announced today that, in addition to 10,000 prisoners who have been released since 2023, a further 553 will be released shortly.
We have now seen proof of something that we have always known: pressure from activists and campaigns can reverse the stranglehold that the US has over Cuba. Our struggle must continue! We must advance past this victory and continue to demand an end to the restrictions on the ESTA visa waiver and an end to the genocidal US blockade of Cuba!