Washington (EFE).- The United States has decided to keep Cuba on the list of countries supporting terrorism for another year, according to the report on terrorism in the world 2022 published on Thursday by the State Department.
North Korea, Iran and Syria complete the list along with Cuba, prompting the imposition of a series of sanctions by Washington.
The inclusion of Cuba on the list in January 2021 was one of the last decisions made by the administration of Republican Donald Trump (2017-2021) before he left power.
The United States then justified the measure by citing the presence on the island of members of the Colombian ELN guerrillas who traveled to Havana to begin peace negotiations with the Colombian government.
The administration of Democrat Joe Biden considers in its report published on Thursday that “the Cuban government has not officially responded to the extradition requests submitted by Colombia” of ELN leaders Pablo Tejada and Pablo Beltrán.
It also denounces that “Cuba continues to host several American refugees who have fled justice because of political violence, many of whom have lived in Cuba for decades.”
Countries that support terrorism
Under U.S. law, to designate a country as a sponsor of terrorism, the secretary of state must determine that the U.S. government has repeatedly supported terrorist groups.
This designation implies a ban on arms sales with this country, greater control of its exports, restrictions on foreign aid, stricter visa requirements and various economic sanctions.
Cuba had been part of the list since 1982, but left it in 2015, during the rapprochement period promoted by then US President Barack Obama (2009-2017), which was stopped by Trump, who during his term in office doubled sanctions against Havana and the “thawing” .
The current Biden administration has made some gestures towards the island, such as removing the remittance restriction on Cuba, but it is still far from Obama’s approach.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel has repeatedly called on Washington to remove his country from the list, whose inclusion he considers unjustified and having a serious economic impact on the island.