Almost 9,000 Cuban and American businessmen sent President Joe Biden a set of demands on Cuba policy yesterday. Among these, the main one is to remove the island from the list of countries that sponsor terrorism.
In this regard, they write: “Despite the fact that there is no evidence that Cuba sponsors international terrorism, and also despite the serious impact of this designation on the financial transactions of Cuban and US companies, and even humanitarian organizations, the Biden Administration continues to keep Cuba on that list.
“The current State Department resorts to the same spurious claims used by its predecessor, even though they are without merit. Cuban authorities cooperate with US security agencies in the fight against terrorism, as demonstrated by the recent meeting between US and Cuban officials on the fight against terrorism.
And later: “Cuba’s inclusion on that list was unequivocally rejected as undeserved during the Obama administration, but President Trump reinstated it before the end of his term.”
Cuban entrepreneurs address Biden: “We ask again that you listen to us”
On the other hand, they point out that the Biden Administration “claims to support the Cuban private sector”, but that “it has not taken significant measures to do so, “including those promised a year ago”, and that “Biden’s policy towards Cuba remains trapped in misguided domestic and foreign policy considerations, as evidenced by the fact that most of the 240 sanctions imposed by the Trump Administration are still in place.”
“These sanctions”, they elaborate, “in addition to the embargo of more than 60 years of the United States against Cuba, directly and indirectly harm private commercial operations by reducing demand and limiting access to supplies and investments.
“In fact,” they conclude, “the administration’s Department of Homeland Security itself acknowledged in a statement on January 9, 2023 that the current economic crisis and the wave of Cuban migration have been driven by three key factors: Cuba is facing its worst crisis economy for decades due to the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, high food prices, and economic sanctions.”
The Alliance for Commitment and Respect for Cuba (STEEL, for its acronym in English) is a grassroots organization that advocates for the normalization of relations between the United States and Cuba and for the end of the embargo.
