The United States and Cuba relations
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USA- Cuba relations
The development of diplomatic and economy in the U.S and Cuba have been significant congressional concerns for decades. Notably, from the end of the cold war, Legislature has played a vital role in strengthening the U.S.A policies toward Cuba island. First, with the performing of the Democracy Act of Cuba1992 along with the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act of 1992 (Hershberg,2016). The measures tended to tighten the U.S. economic sanctions on Cuba, which had been executed in the early 1960s to isolate the Cuban government from any support from the U.S.A.
Nevertheless, both actions offered a road map to normalize the relations, according to the substantial political and economical shifting in Cuba. The legislation moderately modified some of its sanctions-based policies toward Cuba. It ratified the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000, which allowed the U.S. A to export agricultural products to Cuba (Hershberg,2016). Over a while, much of the congressional debate focused on the U.S.A policies on specifically U.S sanctions to other countries. In 2009, Legislature made a law action in the adoption’s measures in easing restrictions of travels to Cuba. The trips included family and marketing of agricultural exports travels.
The ratification eased the Cuba sanction for a time, thus impacting the economic growth of the two States. In 2009, the administration of Obama further took action by facilitating embargo against Cuba where tend to lift restrictions on travels of family and settlements. Furthermore, in 2011, President Obama eased the restrictions on religious and educational travel and several transmittals. In December 2014, Obama declared a critical change in the U.S.A policies toward Cuba. The announced plan moved away from Cuba from a sanction-based system that aimed to isolate Cuba toward policies supporting the normalization and engagement of relations. The shifting of the administration tended to restore diplomatic ties, rescission of Cuba’s description as the State promoter of universal terrorism. The changed policy as well eased further some of the travel and commerce limits between the two countries. In the 114th debate congress, the legislative inventiveness echoed that the new policy tends to divide the States further. Some of the bills ratified inclined towards U.S. economic sanctions against Cuba, while others could block the policy change and thus introducing new sanctions to Cuba (LeoGrande,2016).
USA- Cuba relations under President Trump
In June 2017, President Donald Trump revealed the State’s administrative policy on Cuba. The system partially tended to roll back various of the Barrack Administration’s exertions in normalizing relations with Cuba as well as introducing new sanctions policy. Trump established forth the policy of the ruling government in a speech in Miami whereby by signing a national security presidential memorandum. The signatories replaced the October 2016 presidential policy order by president Obama put the ideas for the process of normalization. Indirective speech, president Donald instructed the government of Cuba to end the protestors abuse, stop jailing innocent citizens, setting freedom to political prisoners, and returning U.S.A escapees from justice in Cuba, among others (Kopetski,2016).
According to Trump, the changes on such issues could pave the way for the two-State engages in the negotiation of strengthening respective policies and create a new relationship (Kopetski,2016). The main drive of reviewing relations and negotiate the new relations tended to better the lives of the Americans along with that of Cubans. The new policy leaves several of Barrack Obama’s policy changes. The Barrack- era negotiated procedure, which shifted includes; the re-establishment of political and economic relations and several of the lessened sanctions in increasing travels and trade with Cuba.
Moreover, Trump’s policy ended Obama’s administrative procedure, including wet foot or even dry foot policy. Such a system intended to encourage a vast number of Cuban migrants’ risk of life by traveling freely and unlawful to America. Various aspects determining renewal of the U.S and Cuba relation include; restrictions on Cuban Military, financial transactions, health injuries of American personnel in Havana, continued engagement in bilateral issues, Internet Task Force, restrictions on People-to-People travel among others. Therefore, the new policy documented in the national security presidential memorandum (NSPM) led to restrictions on financial transactions with firms controlled by the Cuban intelligence, security services, military, or even by individuals (de Bhal,2018).
The new policy as well tended to eliminate individual to- individual educational travels, which took place at personal levels. Besides, the amended laws by the Treasury and trade Department in November 2017 under Trump’s government intended to implement the set new policy. The policy purposefully was to make the Cuban government ratify the agreements and continue to support the dialogue concerning mutual interest issues along with outstanding negotiation issues. In regard, the Cuba administration had no liberty to raise matters concerning its independence as well as sovereignty.
Health Injuries of American People in Havana
According to the American administration, from 2016 to 2018, U.S.A. Embassy dignitaries totaling 26 in Cuba suffered a sequential of multiple injuries, which included cognitive issues and hearing loss. The injuries lead the State Department to engage in investigations about the problems. However, the investigators never reached the point of ultimate conclusion concerning the possible sources, causes, or even technologies advancement, which could have been used in such health instances. In response to the scenario, the American government ordered the withdrawal of nonemergency staff from the American Embassy in September 2017, whereby around two-thirds of the faculty was reduced. The measures intended to reduce the exposure of the Embassy community members from experiencing injury (Hawley,2017).
Similarly, in October 2017, the U.S government directed the departure of fifteen ambassadors from the embassy of Cuba in Washington, DC. Trump’s administration took such action since Cuba failed to protect the American envoys in Havana, and in ensuring equity in the impact on the embassy operations. Cuba’s government firmly refused to accept any responsibility associated with the U.S diplomats’ harms. As a result, the reduction of diplomats in the America embassy in Cuba influenced the regular operation in the embassy. For instance, the processing of the visa, thus making the bilateral engagement between the States becomes more difficult. In a nutshell, the health and injuries issues of the embassy diplomats led the U.S. government to review the America- Cuba relations (Kopetski,2016).
Restrictions on People-to-People Travels
Regarding people-to-people educational travels, the State Department changed the policy, thus requiring such trips to take place under organizational sponsorships that specialize in trips. The amended policy encourages the travelers to be accompanied by a representative from respective the organization. The treasury department authorized that people would longer involve in such travels on their own. In Obama-era, the administrative department announced individuals to travel from March 2016. The trip led to the regular use of commercial flights and cruise ship service, thus allowed more U.S citizens to visit Cuba. However, with the new regulations, the level of America travel to Cuba reduced as a resulting serving as American protection against any risk or harm from Cuba (Hawley,2017).
U.S and Cuba Cooperation on Internet Task Force
In January 2018, according to the national security presidential memorandum, Trump’s administrative department declared the launch of a Cuba Internet Task Force, consist of the American government and non-America government councils. The representatives examined the technologies advancement encounters and opportunities to expand the accessibility of the internet and electronic media in Cuba. The cooperate internet task force held by two subcommittees explored the role of media as well as the information freedom in Cuba. Besides, the subcommittees had to examine the accessibility of the internet in Cuba. In regard, the task force led more people engaging in the use of the internet, thus contribute to the economic growth of States. In turn, by the fact that America invested in the Internet task force, the U.S continued to develop economically (de Bhal,2018).
Case study: Antidrug cooperation relations between Cuba and the U.S.A
According to scholars, Cuba’s geographical location and the shorelines have made it vulnerable to operations of narcotics- trafficking dealings, despite it not being a producer or even consumer of such illegal drugs. The study indicates that onshore wash-ups greatly influence illicit drugs entering the market of Cuba from trafficking by high-speed ships, which move drugs from Jamaica to the Bahamas, America, and Haiti. Moreover, it is noticeable that such medications may enter the Cuban market through small aircraft from concealed airports in Jamaica. For decades, Cuban representatives have articulated worries about their airspace along with waters used for drug trafficking, thus increasing the domestic usage of the drugs in the country. In light, the government of Cuba took the number of actions in dealing with the drug issues, which included; legislation that solidifies drug traffickers’ penalties, increasing training for counter-narcotics individuals. Lastly, Cuba having cooperation with quit number of the States to reinforce the antidrug efforts (Benzi,2017).
As recorded by researchers, since 1999, the operation Hatchet of Cuba focused on maritime, airspace bans, and engagement to recover narcotics washed up on the shores of Cuba (Benzi,2017). For decades, U.S- Cuban cooperation relations have been enhanced through antidrug efforts. The studies state that in 1996, the Cuban authorities cooperated with America to capture cocaine approximately six metric tons overseas, the Miami-bound Limerick, a Honduran-flag ship. The Cuban government turned over the cocaine drugs to the U.S and universally cooperated in investigating and subsequently prosecuting two offenders in the case in America. The international cooperation relations increased from 1999 when America and Cuban delegates met in Havana to deliberate ways to improve anti-drug cooperation. Cuba agreed on the advancement of the communications relationship between the Cuban border Guard and the American coast guard. Moreover, the Cuban government accepted the U.S to station Coast Guard drug interdiction experts at the U.S interest segments in Havana, which took place in September 2000.
Since the restoration of embassy relations of the U.S with Cuba in 2015, the cooperation about illicit antidrug fights has further increased, whereby more dialogues and exchanges on narcotics drugs issues erupted. The study shows that in December 2015, Cuban and American representatives held conferences at the Drug Enforcement Administration headquarters in Washington, DC. The officials discussed ways of stopping the illicit flow of narcotics and exploring techniques of uniting to deal with the whole drug trafficking issue in the country. In April 2016, Cuban security representatives visited the American Joint interagency Task Force south, which has the mandate to detect and monitor illegal drug trafficking in the area. As well, the U.S Joint interagency tends to facilitate international and interagency prohibition efforts.
In July 2016, the dialogue in Havana with America staff from the U.S.A Coast Guard, administrative Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration, and homeland security investigations signed a counter-narcotics measure with Cuba to further thrive in facilitating cooperation and sharing of the information (de Bhal,2018). Over some time, the technical exchange on anti-drug efforts among other participation has been taking place between the America Coast Guard and Cuban border Guard. According to the report released in March 2019 by International Narcotics Control Strategy, Cuba tends to have forty bilateral agreements for anti-drug cooperation with States around the world. Above and beyond, the report noted that Cuban security officials and the American Coast Guard tent to share premeditated information correlated to containers transiting via Cuban territorial waters alleged of trafficking and coordinate security responses.
Noteworthy, despite some of the current conflict between U.S and Cuba relations, the International Narcotics Control Strategy representatives, on the other hand, have strengthened the cooperation relations. The research indicates that, in July 2016, Cuban counterparts and the American Drug Enforcement Administration within the Interior National Anti-Drug Directorate Ministry established a direct communication to aid in the detection of the illicit drug trafficking. Subsequently, the Drug Enforcement Administration has been receiving almost twenty requests for the information linked to investigations of illegal drugs (Hershberg,2016). Moreover, the administration plays a vital role in cooperation, which leads to the arresting of Cuba’s fugitive needed in America. According to the International Narcotics Control Strategy review in 2016, Cuba assists with America state and federal prosecutions by offering evidence and information, thus demonstrating a willingness to cooperate on law reinforcement issues. To conclude, the Cuba and United States governments continue holding bilateral deliberations on law reinforcement and cooperation on drug control and trafficking.
References
Benzi, D., & Zapata, X. (2017). Good-bye Che?: Scope, identity, and change in Cuba’s South–
South cooperation. In South-South Cooperation Beyond the Myths (pp. 79-106). Palgrave
Macmillan, London.
De Bhal, J. (2018). More continuity than change? US strategy toward Cuba under Obama and
Trump. Contemporary Politics, 24(4), 436-453.
Hawley, A. (2017). The Future of US-Latin American Relations under President Donald Trump.
Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut, Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz.
Hershberg, E., & LeoGrande, W. M. (Eds.). (2016). A New Chapter in US-Cuba Relations:
Social, Political, and Economic Implications. Springer.
Kopetski, M. (2016). The New President and US-Cuba Relations: Reactions and Actions by the
US Congress. Cuba Relations: Normalization and its Challenges, 347.
LeoGrande, W. (2016). Reversing Obama’s Cuba Policy? Pensamiento Propio, 45.