The Biden administration announced on Tuesday that it will remove Cuba from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism (SST) in exchange for the release of political prisoners.
The Trump administration previously placed the SST designation on Cuba in the last week of the president-elect’s first term, and Biden officials said they are in contact with the Trump transition team over their action.
“This issue is among the issues on which they’ve been in communication,” a senior administration official said in a call with reporters.
The administration, required by law, is notifying Congress of the decision, allowing them to review it, although there’s little that lawmakers can do to block the lifting of the designation.
Cuba was given the designation in January 2021, shortly before Biden took office. At the time, the U.S. Embassy of Cuba accused the country of “repeatedly providing support for acts of international terrorism in granting safe harbor to terrorists.”
“The Trump Administration has been focused from the start on denying the Castro regime the resources it uses to oppress its people at home, and countering its malign interference in Venezuela and the rest of the Western Hemisphere,” the statement read. “With this action, we will once again hold Cuba’s government accountable and send a clear message: the Castro regime must end its support for international terrorism and subversion of U.S. justice.”
They added that the U.S. had received numerous diplomatic requests for the designation to be lifted. This includes from Colombia, a senior administration official said, where officials noted “positive role that Cuba has made in the Colombian peace talks.”
“We believe these actions will be broadly well received in the region and beyond,” said a second administration official, adding other countries supporting the move include Brazil, Chile, Spain and Canada, as well as the European Union.
Administration officials also noted a critical role played by the Catholic Church.
“We have been in close coordination with a range of actors, including the Catholic Church, to create an improved environment in Cuba,” the official said.
