Open letter published in New York Times demanding Biden reverse Trump's Cuba policy
A letter addressed to President Biden has been published today in the New York Times, urging him to reverse Trump's harsh Cuba policy during his last 90 days in office, as Cuba simultaneously goes through a severe energy crisis and a hurricane.
Despite calls to return to President Obama's normalization efforts, Biden has maintained Trump's strict measures, which include 243 additional sanctions and the designation of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism. These policies have inflicted more than $164 billion in damages on Cuba over the past six decades, with more than $5 billion in losses reported in the last year alone (March 2023-February 2024).
The current national blackout in Cuba, attributed to restrictions on the acquisition of fuel and spare parts resulting from U.S. sanctions, makes the situation for the Cuban people even more dire - the letter emphasizes that this policy hurts the Cuban people, not just the government.
The letter states, “With only 90 days remaining in your term, you can lift these harmful measures. Removing the terrorism designation would allow Cuba to restore its electrical grid and address critical shortages of food and medicine..... This blackout underscores the U.S. legacy of suffering in Cuba.
It is not too late to change this reality with a simple signature. Let Cuba live.
The letter's demand is supported by a growing chorus of international leaders and consistent U.N. General Assembly resolutions calling for the removal of the State Sponsor of Terrorism designation and an end to the U.S. embargo on Cuba. The UN is scheduled to hold its annual vote next week on the resolution to lift the embargo.