NEW YORK: The White House announced that it is relaxing additional restrictions on Cuba regarding travel, commerce and investment, stemming from President Barack Obama’s call to ease Cuban sanctions last December.
The regulatory changes include making it easier to travel to the Caribbean country, expanding general licenses for telecommunications and Internet-based services, and allowing certain people and businesses to set up shop in the country and open bank accounts.
The Monday start date for the new rules coincides with Pope Francis’s visit to the island, just a day before he arrives in the United States. The White House has credited the pontiff with driving the initial thawing of relations in December, and Francis is seen as a key ally in their effort to persuade Congress to further lift sanctions.
“Today’s announcement underscores the Administration’s commitment to promote constructive change for the Cuban people,” Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said in a statement. “A stronger, more open U.S.-Cuba relationship has the potential to create economic opportunities for both Americans and Cubans alike. By further easing these sanctions, the United States is helping to support the Cuban people in their effort to achieve the political and economic freedom necessary to build a democratic, prosperous, and stable Cuba.”
The White House says its efforts to foster transformational change in Cuba depend in part on the Cuban government, which can still place its own restrictions on American commerce.
“The impact of these changes will in fact depend to a great deal on what the Cubans themselves do,” said one senior administration official on a conference call with reporters. “They themselves have talked about doing certain things, for example, unifying the currency or allowing companies to directly hire Cuban employees” — measures U.S. companies have said they’d like to see, the official added.
On the other hand is Congress, which holds the power to fully lift sanctions and confirm an ambassador to Havana. A bipartisan group has put up sharp resistance, citing ongoing concerns about Cuba’s human rights record. Earlier this week, Obama urged business leaders to lobby Congress to end the embargo, though he added, “It doesn’t necessarily have to happen — or even should happen all in one fell swoop.”
On Thursday, Obama quietly presented credentials to the Cuban ambassador to Washington, Jose Ramon Cabanas Rodriguez, in a ceremony that marks the formal beginning of a diplomat’s service in the U.S. The American embassy in Havana is headed by Jeffrey DeLaurentis, who without Senate confirmation carries the title chargé d’affaires.
The White House is hoping Pope Francis can help break that impasse. He’ll arrive in Washington from Cuba on Tuesday, meet with the president on Wednesday, and deliver a joint message to Congress the following day.
The pope, by “going to both Cuba and the United States back to back, I think he will also be demonstrating the possibilities that exist for dialogue,” Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said on a call with reporters on Thursday. “Pope Francis was uniquely respected in both Cuba and the United States, which made both him and the Vatican exactly the right supporters for the process of normalization.”
The administration’s latest moves expand the categories of American travelers to Cuba who can bring their families along with them. It would allow various types of businesses and humanitarian groups to set up physical offices on the island, including Cuba bureaus for news organizations.
U.S. nationals are allowed to provide and receive goods and services to and from Cuban nationals but the ban on the commercial export of goods and services remains. Imports from Cuba and other merchandise originating from the country will be allowed, provided that it is not alcohol or tobacco, is worth less than $100, and is not being carried by a traveler. The changes are also intended to make it easier for cruise ships to dock in Cuba.
According to a fact sheet from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, rules limiting remittances to Cuban nationals (other than prohibited government or Communist Party members) to just $2,000 will be lifted entirely.
Academic restrictions will also fall by the wayside, permitting academic exchanges and other joint non-commercial research between American and Cuban universities.
“In addition to expanding our commercial engagement with the Cuban people, these additional adjustments have the potential to stimulate long overdue economic reform across the country,” Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker said in a statement.
Customs capacity increased for Cuba flights
HAVANA: Customs officials on Tuesday approved a request from Key West International Airport that doubles the number of passengers allowed...