President Trump announced last Friday at the Manuel Artime Theater in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood his new Cuba policy. “The previous administration’s easing of travel and trade does not help the Cuban people,” Trump said. “They only enrich the Cuban Regime.”
The partial reversal of former President Obama’s Cuba policy to normalize relations between the two nations must still be spelled out in regulations by the Treasury and Commerce Departments. Trump’s directive orders Treasury and Commerce to start writing the new regulations within 30 days.
Officials in the Trump administration say that if the Cuban Government releases political prisoners, grants Cubans more political and religious liberties, and allows more money to go to the private sector, the United States could reconsider its current actions.
In terms of trade, The U.S. trade embargo against Cuba will remain, limiting exports to certain agricultural goods, including poultry, and medical devices, which have been permitted since 2000. There have been calls to end the embargo, but the majority of Republicans want to keep it in place and Congress is the only legislative authority that can repeal the embargo.
Poultry, one of the first agriculture commodities to be exported to Cuba, is currently the number one U.S. export to Cuba, and that is not expected to change.
Trump’s policy will ban any commercial dealings with Cuba’s military and intelligence services, including prohibiting U.S. citizen from lodging in any military-owned hotels. Cuba’s Revolutionary Armed Forces, have significant control over the country’s economy, especially the tourism sector. The new policy will also put in place some travel restrictions that could significantly affect Americans. Regulations that allow U.S. commercial flights and cruise ships to travel to Cuba will not be affected.
