WASHINGTON − President Joe Biden notified Congress of his plans to remove Cuba from the United States’ list of state sponsors of terror, in a goodwill gesture the outgoing administration says is meant to help facilitate the release of political prisoners.
The administration said Tuesday that it had completed an assessment and did not find information that supports the designation.
An administration official who briefed reporters said Biden made the decision with the understanding that the Catholic Church was advancing an agreement with Cuba that would allow for the humanitarian release of a significant number of individuals who were unjustly detained. The agreement that is in the works would include dozens of individuals who were arrested in 2021 protests against the Communist government. The official could not say how many political prisoners would be set free but said the Biden administration believed the release would take place in relatively short order.
The Catholic Church has been engaging directly with the Cuban government, the person said. The Vatican has consistently kept the administration appraised of the potential actions that Cuba will be undertaking.
Biden spoke this week to Pope Francis by phone, giving the administration confidence in the strength of the dialogue, the official conveyed. He also awarded Francis the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction after their conversation.
An administration official said Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva also asked Biden to lift the state sponsor of terror designation. Biden met with Lula during the Group of 20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro in November. The administration said the Colombian and Canadian governments also asked the U.S. to remove Cuba from the terror list.
Holding or releasing political prisoners is not a component of the state sponsor of terrorism designation. The U.S. applies the punishment to countries that are found to have repeatedly supported international terrorist organizations.
The Trump administration added Cuba to the state sponsor of terror list days before the Republican left office in 2021 and it has remained there throughout the Biden administration. Just three other countries, Syria, Iran and North Korea, are currently on the State Department list.
The designation allows for restrictions on U.S. foreign assistance, bans on defense exports and sales and other financial penalties, according to the State Department. It also gives the federal government authority to sanction people and countries that participate in trade with pariah nations.
In a letter on Tuesday to Congress the president said the administration had not found any instances of support by Cuba for international terrorism in the last six months and the country’s government had provided assurances it would not do so in the future.
Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., is known as a skeptic of increasing U.S. engagement with Cuba’s communist government. He was influential in crafting Trump’s first-term policy toward the island nation. Rubio will appear before the Senate on Wednesday and is expected to easily win confirmation to the position.
The outgoing administration told reporters that it been in communication with Trump’s transition team about its plans and that Congress and the new president would have an opportunity to review Biden’s decision. An official emphasized that Trump’s team would be working off the same information.
(This article was updated to include additional information.)
