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The Telegraph
Days before Trump’s departure, US renames Cuba state as sponsor of terrorism
The outgoing administration of President Donald Trump on Monday returned Cuba to the blacklist of US sponsors of terrorism, the latest in a series of last-minute actions to impede the diplomacy of President-elect Joe Biden. The terror designation severely hampers foreign investment and can only be removed after a formal review by the Biden administration, meaning it can remain in effect for months and delay efforts to ease tensions. With nine days remaining in office, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo cited Cuba’s ties to Colombian rebels, the alliance with the Venezuelan left, and the refuge of several American fugitives to justify the blacklisting. “With this action, we will once again hold the government of Cuba accountable and send a clear message: the Castro regime must end its support for international terrorism and the subversion of US justice,” Pompeo said in a statement, referring to the former leaders Fidel and Raúl. Castro. “The United States will continue to support the Cuban people in their desire for a democratic government and respect for human rights, including freedom of religion, expression and association,” he said. It is the latest in a series of decisions made by Pompeo in his final days in office, with most of Washington focused on impeaching Trump for inciting a deadly riot in the United States Capitol by supporters who tried stop the ceremonial certification of Biden’s victory. . Since Saturday, Pompeo has also designated Yemen’s Houthi rebels as a terrorist group, defying warnings from aid groups and relaxing the rules on the United States’ engagement with Taiwan. In 2015, then-President Barack Obama removed Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism as he moved to normalize relations and declared that the half-century American effort to isolate the communist island was a failure.
