Lawmaker Urges Administration to Keep Cuba as State Sponsor of Terrorism
The chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere told a State Department official last week that she’s concerned the Biden administration plans to remove Cuba from the state sponsors of terrorism list.
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“If you were to do that, you’re giving that cruel and despicable regime oxygen” to continue repressing Cuban dissidents, Rep. Maria Salazar, R-Fla., said to hearing witness Eric Jacobstein, deputy assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs.
Jacobstein testified that the administration "at this time" is not formally reviewing Cuba’s designation, which subjects the country to certain sanctions and trade restrictions. Asked whether the administration is "thinking about taking Cuba off the list," Jacobstein demurred, saying that any future review of Cuba’s status would conform with criteria set by U.S. law.
“That means yes, you are thinking about doing it,” Salazar asserted. “It does not,” Jacobstein responded.
The administration in May removed Cuba from its list of countries that aren’t cooperating fully with U.S. counterterrorism efforts, fueling Republican congressional concerns that the decision could pave the way for the removal of Cuba from the state sponsors of terrorism list (see 2405170040). The administration’s recent decision to give some in Cuba’s private sector access to the U.S. financial system also has alarmed congressional Republicans (see 2405290080).
Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, the Western Hemisphere subcommittee’s ranking member, said he hopes the administration reviews Cuba’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, which the Trump administration imposed in January 2021. Castro said the U.S. has tried through various policies since the early 1960s to isolate Cuba, which “obviously has not worked" because the Communist regime has stayed in power and the country's people have remained impoverished. He believes that more engagement with Cuba might yield better results.
Also during the hearing, Salazar asked whether the State Department could add Nicaragua to the state sponsors of terrorism list for serving as a way station for suspected terrorists heading to the U.S. Jacobstein said he would be “happy to take back your recommendation” to the department.