Economy
Cuba’s Raul Castro dismisses harsher US tone under Trump
Cuba’s Raul Castro dismisses harsher US tone under Trump – Castro’s comments to Cuba’s National Assembly were his first on Trump’s June announcement of a partial rollback of the Cuba-U.S. detente – He also rejected any “lessons” on human rights from the U.S., saying his country “has a lot to be proud about” on the […] Continue reading
Convicted of Murder, and Now Swept Up in U.S.-Cuba Shift
Convicted of Murder, and Now Swept Up in U.S.-Cuba Shift Ishmael Muslim Ali now lives a quiet life in Cuba, where he remains wanted by the F.B.I. for aircraft piracy. Credit Cave 7 Productions For more than 30 years, Ishmael Muslim Ali has lived a relatively full and unremarkable life in Cuba. He taught English […] Continue reading
Can Trump Destroy Obama’s Legacy?
Analysis: Can Trump Destroy Obama’s Legacy? The New York Times By PETER BAKER WASHINGTON — When the judgment of history comes, former President Barack Obama might have figured he would have plenty to talk about. Among other things, he assumed he could point to his health care program, his sweeping trade deal with Asia, his […] Continue reading
Why liberals should support Trump — not Obama — on Cuba policy
Why liberals should support Trump — not Obama — on Cuba policy BY MIKE GONZALEZ, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR – 06/27/17 11:00 AM EDT 54 Was President Obama’s opening to the Castro government motivated by a real belief that it would help Cubans, or was it a vanity project from the start? We will never know for […] Continue reading
Ken Hall: US travelers can still bring good will to Cuba
Ken Hall: US travelers can still bring good will to Cuba Posted Jun 26, 2017 at 5:17 PM When we went to Cuba this winter, we flew from Miami on American Airlines to join a group tour, see some performances, meet some Cubans, stay at two very nice hotels and eat at a variety of […] Continue reading
Cuba and the United States Return to the Trenches
Cuba and the United States Return to the Trenches / Iván García Iván García, 19 June 2017 — For both countries it amounts to a remake of the Cold War, this time in version 2.0. It will take time to determine the scope of the contest or if the new diplomatic battle will involve only […] Continue reading
Trump, The Military And The Division Of Powers In Cuba
Trump, The Military And The Division Of Powers In Cuba 14ymedio, Reinaldo Escobar, Havana, 20 June 2017 — The recent decision by the president of the United States to limit commercial relations with Cuban companies controlled by the military highlights a rarely explored corner of the national reality. Anyone who knows the Island minimally knows […] Continue reading
Thanks for Nothing, Trump
Thanks for Nothing, Trump Cubanet, Miriam Celaya, Havana, 21 June 2017 — After much media frenzy, Trump’s “new policy” toward Cuba has not gone beyond the rhetoric expected by most political analysts. His act was more a symbolic gesture towards his faithful than any practical novelty. In short, those who expected an announcement of truly […] Continue reading
Cubans Feel Like Hostages to Both Castro and Trump
Cubans Feel Like Hostages to Both Castro and Trump / Iván García Ivan Garcia, 19 June 2017 — “Impotence.” This is the word that a performer in the Guiñol Theater (located in the basement of the FOCSA building in Havana’s Vedado district) uses when asked her opinion of the new Trump Doctrine regarding Cuba. On […] Continue reading
Trump, Obama and subjugated Cubans
Editorial: Trump, Obama and subjugated Cubans DDC | Madrid | 22 de Junio de 2017 – 14:21 CEST. Cuba’s official television aired Donald Trump’s recent appearance at the Manuel Artime Theater in Miami. That makes two speeches by US presidents that Cubans on the Island have been able to watch recently. In March of 2016, […] Continue reading
Trump Gets It Right
Editorial: Trump Gets It Right DDC | Madrid | 22 de Junio de 2017 – 11:23 CEST. In his speech in Miami, US President Donald Trump rightly divided Cuban society into two groups: the military and the people. And his criticism of the regime did not center on its ideology, on the single party, or […] Continue reading
Changes To Cuba Policy Met With Mixed Reactions
Changes To Cuba Policy Met With Mixed Reactions JULIEGRACE BRUFKE Capitol Hill Reporter 3:52 PM 06/19/2017 President Donald Trump’s changes to the United State’s policy on Cuba, which tightens restrictions on travel and business transactions between countries, has been met with mixed reactions by congressional Republicans. Proponents of the adjustments argue it’s necessary for the […] Continue reading
Cuba Won’t Negotiate Trump’s New Policy
Cuba Won’t Negotiate Trump’s New Policy At a Monday news conference, the nation’s foreign minister called the latest deal “a grotesque spectacle straight from the Cold War.” ARIA BENDIX JUN 19, 2017 NEWS Speaking at a news conference in Vienna, Austria on Monday, Cuba’s foreign minister, Bruno Rodriguez, said his nation was not interested in […] Continue reading
Trump rolls back some, not all, changes in US-Cuba relations
Trump rolls back some, not all, changes in US-Cuba relations Darlene Superville, Michael Weissenstein and Josh Lederman, Associated Press, Associated Press • June 17, 2017 MIAMI (AP) — Pressing “pause” on a historic detente, President Donald Trump thrust the U.S. and Cuba back on a path toward open hostility with a blistering denunciation of the […] Continue reading
Trump’s Cuba policy tries to redefine ‘good’ U.S. tourism. That includes putting them back on tour buses.
Trump’s Cuba policy tries to redefine ‘good’ U.S. tourism. That includes putting them back on tour buses. By Nick Miroff June 17 at 2:43 PM The American traveler in Cuba — sweating, disoriented and probably a bit woozy from the rum drinks — is once more at the heart of the struggle for the island’s […] Continue reading
Travel Industry Scrambles After New Cuba Restrictions
Travel Industry Scrambles After New Cuba Restrictions By VICTORIA BURNETT JUNE 16, 2017 As President Trump outlined a stricter policy toward Cuba on Friday, travel industry representatives scrambled to decode new prohibitions and reassure clients that the island was not off limits. Hotel owners, tour operators and online booking agencies — who have been at […] Continue reading
Farmers Blast Trump’s Cuba Retreat as Bad for Trade
Farmers Blast Trump’s Cuba Retreat as Bad for Trade June 17, 2017 4:55 AM Reuters CHICAGO — U.S. farm groups criticized President Donald Trump’s decision to retreat from his predecessor’s opening toward Cuba, saying it could derail huge increases in farm exports that totaled $221 million last year. A trade delegation from Minnesota, one of […] Continue reading
President Trump’s ballyhooed Cuba travel policy is topsy-turvy
President Trump’s ballyhooed Cuba travel policy is topsy-turvy BY FABIOLA SANTIAGO fsantiago@miamiherald.com My first reaction to President Donald Trump’s ballyhooed Cuba policy was to message my millennial American daughter to let her know that she can go ahead with her plans to visit Havana: “You can book your cruise.” Turns out the supposedly big reversal […] Continue reading
Inside Oval Office, Rubio and Diaz-Balart pushed Trump to crack down on Cuba
Inside Oval Office, Rubio and Diaz-Balart pushed Trump to crack down on Cuba BY PATRICIA MAZZEI pmazzei@miamiherald.com Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart sat in the Oval Office last month, surrounded by two Cabinet secretaries, the national security adviser and an array of top White House staff, and asked President Donald Trump to put […] Continue reading
Americans will still be able to travel to Cuba, but rules will be stricter
Americans will still be able to travel to Cuba, but rules will be stricter BY MIMI WHITEFIELD mwhitefield@miamiherald.com The good news for Americans who want to travel to Cuba is they still can, but a draft of President Donald Trump’s presidential policy directive indicates they shouldn’t even think of sneaking away for a day on […] Continue reading
Trump recasts Cuba policy, takes harder line than Obama on military, travel
Trump recasts Cuba policy, takes harder line than Obama on military, travel BY PATRICIA MAZZEI AND NORA GÁMEZ TORRES pmazzei@miamiherald.com In an overhaul of one of his predecessor’s signature legacies, President Donald Trump will redraw U.S. policy toward Cuba on Friday, tightening travel restrictions for Americans that had been loosened under President Barack Obama and […] Continue reading
Trump: New policy on Cuba begins with enforcement of U.S. law
Trump: New policy on Cuba begins with enforcement of U.S. law BY MIMI WHITEFIELD mwhitefield@miamiherald.com The new Cuba policy announced by President Donald Trump makes it clear the president will be looking to the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act of 1996 — also known as the Helms-Burton Act — in forging his new take […] Continue reading
Populism Cuban Style: Conquests, Threats and Leadership
Populism Cuban Style: Conquests, Threats and Leadership 14ymedio, Yoani Sanchez, 6 June 2017 — The leader speaks for hours on the platform, his index finger pointing to an invisible enemy. A human tide applauds when the intonation of a phrase demands it and stares enraptured at the bearded speaker. For decades these public acts were […] Continue reading
US will ‘preserve some commercial activity’ with Cuba: Rex Tillerson
US will ‘preserve some commercial activity’ with Cuba: Rex Tillerson By Gabby Morrongiello June 13, 2017 | 1:46pm Modal Trigger WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Tuesday that the Trump administration will preserve some commercial activity between the U.S. and Havana when it rolls back part of President Obama’s Cuba policy later this […] Continue reading
The Cuban visa business: murky but profitable
The Cuban visa business: murky but profitable BY ABEL FERNÁNDEZ abfernandez@elnuevoherald.com Despite the recent start of regular commercial flights to Cuba by U.S. airlines and a record number of passengers, the process of traveling to the island can be murky and confusing to U.S. visitors. After decades of charter flights, the U.S. commercial flights are […] Continue reading
Trump Expected To Restrict Trade, Travel With Cuba
Trump Expected To Restrict Trade, Travel With Cuba Updated at 8:19 p.m. ET President Trump is preparing to announce changes in U.S. policy toward Cuba, possibly tightening restrictions on travel and trade that were loosened under former President Barack Obama. Trump is expected to announce the changes in Miami on Friday. The move was confirmed […] Continue reading
Trump policy change on Cuba coming, but he has not made decision yet
Trump policy change on Cuba coming, but he has not made decision yet BY NORA GÁMEZ TORRES ngameztorres@elnuevoherald.com President Donald Trump is scheduled to announce a revised policy on relations with Cuba on Friday in Miami, but a White House spokeswoman told el Nuevo Herald that Trump had not yet seen the final recommendations following […] Continue reading
How will President Trump change Obama’s Cuba policy?
How will President Trump change Obama’s Cuba policy? Tribune Washington Bureau (TNS) Sunday, June 11, 2017 9:12pm President Donald Trump is expected to announce his changes on Friday. WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is expected to roll back parts of President Barack Obama’s improvement of relations with Cuba, siding with hawks who oppose detente and […] Continue reading
Trump considers reversing historic Obama-era opening with Cuba
Trump considers reversing historic Obama-era opening with Cuba Tracy Wilkinson President Trump is expected to roll back parts of the historic Obama-era opening with Cuba, siding with hawks who oppose detente and rejecting demands from U.S. businesses for whom the island is a ripe potential market. The decision follows an inter-agency administration review of one […] Continue reading
Obama opened the U.S. up to Cuba, and Trump may be about to close it again
Obama opened the U.S. up to Cuba, and Trump may be about to close it again By Matt Spetalnick Reuters WASHINGTON, June 9 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump is expected to visit Miami as early as next Friday to announce a new Cuba policy that could tighten rules on trade and travel, rolling back parts […] Continue reading
Trump’s new Cuba policy: What’s at stake for the island?
Trump’s new Cuba policy: What’s at stake for the island? By Will Grant Cuba correspondent, BBC News From the section Latin America & Caribbean Warmer ties with Cuba after almost 60 years of hostility was one of President Barack Obama’s main foreign policy legacies. He and Cuban leader Raul Castro agreed to normalise diplomatic relations […] Continue reading
Trump to reveal Cuba policy in Miami next Friday
Trump to reveal Cuba policy in Miami next Friday BY PATRICIA MAZZEI pmazzei@miamiherald.com President Donald Trump will travel to Miami next Friday to announce his administration’s changes to U.S.-Cuba policy, a source with knowledge of the president’s plans told the Miami Herald. The location for the event is still in the works. But scheduling the […] Continue reading
Geingob calls for removal of U.S. trade embargo on Cuba
Geingob calls for removal of U.S. trade embargo on Cuba June 6, 2017 Albertina Nakale Windhoek-President Hage Geingob says there is much ground to cover to ensure the complete lifting of the United States of America’s long running economic and trade blockade against Cuba. Geingob made the remarks yesterday during the commencement of the 5th […] Continue reading
Senators introduce The Freedom to Export to Cuba Act of 2017
Senators introduce The Freedom to Export to Cuba Act of 2017 The legislation repeals the Cuban trade embargo. Jun 06, 2017 A bipartisan coalition of senators have introduced legislation, The Freedom to Export to Cuba Act of 2017, to eliminate legal barriers for Americans doing business in Cuba. U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Mike Enzi […] Continue reading
Cuba: More Castroism but Without the Castros
Cuba: More Castroism but Without the Castros / Iván García Iván García, 17 May 2017 — In front of an old mansion on 17th Street in Vedado that now serves as the headquarters of the Union of Writers and Artists, there is a poster showing hundreds of men dressed in battle fatigues and lined up […] Continue reading
President Trump, citing human rights, considers reviving limits on travel to Cuba
President Trump, citing human rights, considers reviving limits on travel to Cuba By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS, New York Times Thursday, June 1, 2017 8:19am WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is considering reversing major pieces of the Obama administration’s opening with Cuba and reinstating limits on travel and commerce, citing human rights abuses by the Castro […] Continue reading
Trump weighs shift on Cuba
Trump weighs shift on Cuba BY MELANIE ZANONA – 05/31/17 06:00 AM EDT 70 President Trump is weighing whether to take a harder line with Cuba, potentially risking the thaw in relations started by the last administration. But it’s unclear just how far Trump is willing to go in reversing former President Barack Obama’s historic […] Continue reading
Officials: Trump may roll back Obama opening with Cuba
Officials: Trump may roll back Obama opening with Cuba By Patrick Oppmann and Elise Labott, CNN Updated 0903 GMT (1703 HKT) May 31, 2017 Story highlights Officials: Trump may reverse Obama-era policies softening relations with Cuba Gesture would fulfill campaign promises to Cuban-American voters and anti-Castro Congress members Havana, Cuba (CNN)President Donald Trump is expected […] Continue reading
Can We Progress in Cuba under the Current Model?
Can We Progress in Cuba under the Current Model? May 29, 2017 HAVANA TIMES — I couldn’t help but think about the analogy of a popular Cuban saying when reflecting upon the prospects we have of our economy progressing by 2030, while reading about a case in the Juventud Rebelde newspaper last week. The article […] Continue reading
More than 50 senators support eliminating restrictions on travel to Cuba
More than 50 senators support eliminating restrictions on travel to Cuba BY NORA GÁMEZ TORRES ngameztorres@elnuevoherald.com As the Cuba policy review reaches its final stage, politicians, companies and organizations that support the policy of engagement are making an extra effort to send this message to Donald Trump: Mr. President, don’t eliminate opportunities to travel to […] Continue reading