Reversing Trump measures, U.S. will expand flights to Cuba and resume family reunifications

[elleng]

Source: Miami Herald

Administration reversing trmp Cuba policies.

Read more: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article261493517.html

[BumRushDaShow]

1. Here is the State Department "Fact Sheet" on this

https://www.state.gov/biden-administration-measures-to-support-the-cuban-people/

Biden Administration Measures to Support the Cuban People

Fact Sheet

Office of the Spokesperson

May 16, 2022

Today, the United States is taking a series of measures to increase support for the Cuban people in line with our national security interests. The Cuban people are confronting an unprecedented humanitarian crisis — and our policy will continue to focus on empowering the Cuban people to help them create a future free from repression and economic suffering.

Specifically, the Administration will:

Facilitate family reunification by reinstating the Cuban Family Reunification Parole (CFRP) Program and continuing to increase capacity for consular services. Limited immigrant visa processing resumed in Havana on May 3, 2022. We will reinstate the CFRP and increase visa processing in Havana while continuing to process the majority of immigrant visa cases at the U.S. Embassy in Georgetown, Guyana.

Strengthen family ties and facilitate educational connections for the U.S. and Cuban people by expanding authorized travel in support of the Cuban people. We will authorize scheduled and charter flights to locations beyond Havana. We also will implement regulatory changes to reinstate group people-to-people and other categories of group educational travel, as well as certain travel related to professional meetings and professional research, including to support expanded Internet access and remittance processing companies and to provide additional support to Cuban entrepreneurs. We are not reinstating individual people-to-people travel.

Increase support for independent Cuban entrepreneurs. We will encourage commercial opportunities outside of the state sector by authorizing access to expanded cloud technology, application programming interfaces, and e-commerce platforms. We will explore options to expand support of additional payment options for Internet-based activities, electronic payments, and business with independent Cuban entrepreneurs. We will work to expand entrepreneurs’ access to microfinance and training.

Ensure that remittances flow more freely to the Cuban people while not enriching those who perpetrate human rights abuses. Specifically, we will remove the current limit on family remittances of $1,000 per quarter per sender-receiver pair and will authorize donative (i.e., non-family) remittances, which will support independent Cuban entrepreneurs. We will engage with electronic payment processors to encourage increased Cuban market accessibility. We will not remove entities from the Cuba Restricted List.

The Administration is working expeditiously to effectuate these changes, which will be implemented via steps taken and regulatory changes made by relevant Departments and Agencies in short order.

[elleng]

2. Thanks

[BumRushDaShow]

3. You're welcome!

[elleng]

4. I coudn't quote article due to 'ad blocking,'

so appreciate your complete info.

[BumRushDaShow]

7. You can copy/paste this

Reversing Trump measures, U.S. will expand flights to Cuba and resume family reunifications

By Michael Wilner and

Nora Gamez Torres
Updated May 16, 2022 7:16 PM


The Biden administration is restoring flights to Cuban cities other than Havana and reestablishing a family reunification program suspended for years, following recommendations of a long-anticipated review of U.S. policy toward Cuba, senior administration officials told McClatchy and the Miami Herald on Monday. The administration will also allow group travel for educational or professional exchanges and lift caps on money sent to families on the island.

The policy changes come after a months-long review that began in earnest after a series of protests roiled the island nation on July 11, prompting a new round of U.S. sanctions on Cuban officials. Cuba is facing the worst economic crisis since the Soviet Union collapsed, with widespread shortages of food and medicines, and thousands of Cubans trying to reach the United States. One senior administration official said the new policy measures allow the administration to continue supporting the Cuban people and guarding U.S. national security interests.

“Our policy continues to center on human rights, empowering the Cuban people to determine their own future and these are practical measures intended to address the humanitarian situation and the migration flows,” the official said, adding that labor rights will also be at the center of any talks with the Cuban government. As promised in his campaign for the White House, President Joe Biden will reverse several of the measures taken by his predecessor, including by allowing commercial and charter flights to destinations outside the Cuban capital. Currently, American airline companies can only fly to Havana, leaving Cuban Americans with few options to visit their families in other provinces.

The Cuban Family Reunification Parole Program, which has not taken new cases since 2016 and left 22,000 pending applications in limbo, will also be reinstated, the officials said, following bipartisan calls to address the issue. An administration official said the United States intends to uphold migration accords with Cuba from the 1990s, under which the United States committed to issuing 20,000 immigration visas to Cubans annually, a request made by a Cuban government delegation that recently traveled to Washington to discuss an ongoing wave of Cubans trying to reach the U.S. mainland by land and sea.

(snip)

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article261493517.html

[elleng]

8. Thanks

[Haggis 4 Breakfast]

5. That the last administration listed Cuba

As one of four countries sponsoring state-terrorism was ludicrous.

But then there is a small faction of brain damaged "freedom fighter" wannabes down in Dade County (Miami) who still pretend that Cuba is a threat to us and envision re-enacting the Bay of Pigs. They're stuck in 1961 and don't want to find their way out - kind of like those lost Japanese soldiers in the Pacific islands who thought the way was still underway in the '50s. At least they had an excuse.

[Hulk]

10. Satisfied all the rabid Cuban-AmeriKKKans.

Florida is hostage to these disgruntled, angry latinos. So tired of punishing Cubans for what happened 60 years ago. Not even so sure is was just then. We put Castro in a box.

[Haggis 4 Breakfast]

11. I lived down in Dade for years,

and you would not believe the delusions of these people. It's just STUPID.

[SCantiGOP]

22. I have a friend who lives near Miami, and he says the same thing

There are a lot of people who think they will reclaim "their" property that was seized by Castro in 1960. They will vote for anyone who tells them the are going to be aggressive against the Cuban government.
On the other hand, he has talked to a lot of more recent Cuban immigrants who say that, while most people are very disillusioned with conditions under the current government, they would fight like the Ukrainians if the US were to invade the island to overthrow their government.
We need to establish full diplomatic relations and tell the people and the government that our 60 year was is over, and we now acknowledge what is supposed to be a cherished American ideal - that everyone has a right to establish their own system of government.

[Haggis 4 Breakfast]

23. It's mostly the older Cuban generation

that still believes this nonsense. The generation born here could care less about all that.

The one thing that worries me is the American corporations that are salivating at the prospect to gain a foothold in Cuba, especially in Havana, to plunder and profit at the expense of the Cuban people. I'm old enough to remember Batista and how corrupt he was. If newer leadership gains power, it could happen all over again. Look at who just won an election in the Philippines -- Marcos's progeny.

[groundloop]

12. Yeah, nothing good happens when you help prop up a corrupt dictator (i.e. Batista).

[ancianita]

21. ...

Yes, we did that to Castro. And tried to kill him at least 600 times, by their count.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_attempts_on_Fidel_Castro

[yaesu]

6. Its about time. nt

[Hulk]

9. Should have been done Day 1 of this administration.....

...but better late than never.

[BumRushDaShow]

14. "Should have been done Day 1 of this administration....."

This is what he did "Day 1 of this administration" -

And as a note, on "Day 1 of this administration" (which was 1/20/21) there was obviously no "Secretary of State" confirmed yet because Biden had just been inaugurated, and it was the State Department who was tasked to develop this policy - https://www.state.gov/biden-administration-measures-to-support-the-cuban-people/

[groundloop]

13. THIS made my day.... I travelled to Cuba in 2019 and have been chomping at the bit to return

The people are wonderful and there's so much history. I can't wait to get back and see even more.

[Historic NY]

15. Wow I can return, I know the Cuban people will be dancing in the streets

[Samrob]

16. HOORAY!!!! Thank you Mr. President! nt

[David__77]

17. The US used to criticize others for restricting travel abroad.

…

[James48]

18. Why did it take A YEAR??

Trump screwed up everything. Reverse it.

[Martin68]

19. Glad to hear it.

[ancianita]

20. So glad for this reversal. Slow progress, but progress. Thanks for your post!

I hope my wonderful Cuban guide will finally get to see her family in Tampa.

[childfreebychoice]

24. So happy. Have friends who want to start businesses in

Cuba, but America's on again, off again policy puts the kibosh on that