Nearly 600 parliamentarians from 73 countries call on the United States to remove Cuba from the list of “State sponsors of terrorism”

Nearly 600 parliamentarians from 73 countries around the world wrote a joint letter, coordinated and published by the Progressive International (PI), in which they condemn the designation of Cuba by the United States as a “State sponsor of terrorism” as “cynical, cruel and a clear violation of international law.” In the letter, published today, Friday, September 20, the legislators call on their respective governments to “take immediate measures to advocate for the removal [of the designation].”

The designation of State sponsor of terrorism by the United States, withdrawn in 2015 after a thorough evaluation by the Obama Administration, was reapplied to Cuba in the final days of the Trump presidency in 2021. Countries included in the United States list face extreme sanctions that hinder access to medicine and food. The other three countries with the US government designation are Syria, since 1979, Iran, since 1984, and North Korea, since 2017. President Joe Biden has not withdrawn the designation, despite having promised a return to Obama-era policy.

The signatories, brought together by the Progressive International, advocate for “the urgency of removing Cuba from the list of “State sponsors of terrorism” in the name of dignity, decency and the integrity of the UN Charter.” They point out that, according to UN experts, the designation has weakened “fundamental human rights, including the right to food, the right to health, the right to education, economic and social rights, the right to life and the right to development.”

Among the most prominent signatories are former President of the Belgian Workers' Party Peter Mertens, Brazilian MP Célia Xakriabá, Canadian MP and IP Council member Niki Ashton, Colombian Senator and IP Council member Clara López Obregón, former Secretary General of the Progressive Working People's Party (AKEL) of Cyprus Andros Kyprianou, Ecuadorian MP Jahiren Noriega, French MP Arnaud Le Gall, leader of the German party Die Linke Martin Schirdewan, Ghanaian MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Dimitris Koutsoumpas, former President of Guyana Donald Ramotar, First Vice President of the National Congress of Honduras Hugo Noé Pino, Indian MP John Brittas, leader of the National People's Party of Jamaica Mark Golding, Malaysian MP Wong Chen, Secretary General of the Mexican party Morena Citlalli Hernández, Senegalese MP Guy Marius Sagna, the leader of the Movement of Socialists of Serbia Bojan Torbica, the leader of the Seychelles opposition Sebastian Pillay, the Spanish MP and member of the IP Council Gerardo Pisarello, the leader of the Spanish Podemos party Ione Belarra, the leader of the Sri Lankan National Freedom Front Wimal Weerawansa, the President of the Peoples’ Democratic Party of Turkey and member of the IP Council Ertuğrul Kürkcü, the former leader of the UK Labour Party and member of the IP Council Jeremy Corbyn.

The signatories argue that the designation “is cruel because it is designed to maximize the suffering of the people of Cuba, stifling their economy, displacing their families and even restricting the flow of humanitarian aid.”

In May 2024, the US State Department finally removed Cuba from the list of states that “do not fully cooperate” with the United States in the fight against terrorism. However, the letter argues that “this is not enough” as “Cuba continues to suffer as a result of its cynical, cruel and illegal exclusion from the international economy.”

The letter, coordinated by the Progressive International, comes after 35 former heads of state and government wrote to Joe Biden calling on him to remove Cuba from the list as he enters his final months in office.

Full text of the letter

We, the undersigned parliamentarians from around the world, condemn the designation of Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism” and call on our respective governments to take immediate action to advocate for its removal

The designation of Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism” by the United States is cynical, cruel and a clear violation of international law.

The designation, withdrawn in 2015 following a thorough assessment by the Obama administration, was reapplied to Cuba in the final days of the Trump presidency as the final act of his economic warfare campaign against the island.

As a candidate, Joe Biden promised to restore the diplomatic relationship fostered by his Democratic predecessor.

But as president, Biden reneged—even after the Colombian government dropped extradition charges against members of its National Liberation Army (ELN)—on Trump’s original justification for reapplying the “sponsor state” designation.

The designation is therefore cynical, because Cuba, far from sponsoring terrorism, has served as a key intermediary in peace talks between the Colombian government, the ELN, and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The current talks mark a decade since Cuba convened CELAC member states to declare the region a Zone of Peace, “based on respect for the principles and norms of International Law.”

The designation is cruel because it is designed to maximize the suffering of Cuba’s people, stifling their economy, displacing their families, and even restricting the flow of humanitarian aid. According to UN experts, the designation has weakened "fundamental human rights, including the right to food, the right to health, the right to education, economic and social rights, the right to life and the right to development."

Finally, the designation is illegal because it weakens "the principle of sovereign equality of States, the prohibition of intervention in the internal affairs of States and the principle of peaceful settlement of international disputes," according to UN legal experts. The extreme and extraterritorial sanctions triggered by the designation therefore constitute a clear violation of international law.

In May 2024, the US State Department finally removed Cuba from the list of States that "do not fully cooperate" with the United States in the fight against terrorism. But this is not enough. Cuba continues to suffer as a result of its cynical, cruel and illegal exclusion from the international economy.

With this letter we underline the urgency of removing Cuba from the list of "State sponsors of terrorism" in the name of dignity, decency and the integrity of the UN Charter, and we call on our governments to use all diplomatic means to redress this grave injustice.

(Cubaminrex)

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