Obama can annul key aspects of blockade

Obama can annul key aspects of blockade

Josefina Vidal, Cuba's Foreign Ministry General Director for US AffairsVidal, spoke on Cuban television about possible actions the US president can take to alleviate key aspects of the blockade, and identified those he can't.

"It is within the powers of US president Barack Obama to annul the key components of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on Cuba," Vidal said. "Sanctions are still in force despite some modifications introduced by the departments of treasury and trade on January 16."

She added that the changes have introduced some flexibility to the current prohibitions on travel to Cuba imposed on US citizens.

These changes will also allow certain commercial transactions, mainly in the field of telecommunications, and create a conducive environment for US financial institutions to start operations in Cuba.

However, the ban on Cuba using the US dollar in transactions with other countries - something that the resident of the White House can revert if he has the political will to do so - is still in force, Vidal pointed out.

In general, President Obama can "bury the fundamental parts of the blockade" by using his executive powers, she said.

Vidal noted that only a small number of issues are ruled by laws approved by Congress, like the travel prohibition for US citizens.

The president cannot allow Cuba to carry out transactions with US companies in third countries either, although he can authorize links between Cuban companies and corporations based in US territory.

Nor does the president have the legal authority to allow US financial institutions to grant credit to their Cuban counterparts to acquire products or services, and payments must still be made in cash, and in advance.

Regarding the Cuban Adjustment Act (CAA) approved by the US Congress in 1966, Vidal noted that it was the main stimulus to illegal emigration to the United States.

“It is impossible to have normal migration relations between the two countries as long as that statute is in force,” she said. The same applies to the “dry feet, wet feet” policy, which was not a statute approved by Congress, but a pesidential decision made by President William Clinton in 1995.

That policy grants refuge to Cubans who arrive on US soil (ie with ‘dry feet’), and repatriates those who are intercepted at sea (with ‘wet feet’).

Vidal noted that confusion surrounds the implementation of the CAA, as it grants discretional faculties to the US attorney general to grant benefits to Cubans, or not.

As such, and as has been seen over the past few decades, it is vulnerable to political manipulations, the Cuban diplomat pointed out.

Vidal recalled that the 1996 Helms-Burton Act codified all stipulations of the blockade and turned them into a law that can only be changed by the US Congress.

That act also granted the president the facility to authorize, by means of licences, some opportunities for interrelation with Cuba, and that is the case with the recent measures to ease the ban on US citizens’ travel to Cuba. However, Obama lacks the legal authority to allow US citizens to visit Cuba as tourists.

The official noted the importance of the December 17 2014 decision made by presidents Castro and Obama to reestablish diplomatic relations, and advance them through a process of normalization of bilateral ties on the basis of mutual respect and observance of the principles of international law.

Vidal stressed that it is a long and difficult process demanding time, effort, and work to solve the complex issues involved, but it will provide an opportunity to improve communication between the two parties, expand cultural exchanges and establish more positive dynamics in general between the two countries.

She repeated that in these negotiations, the principles on which Cuba's domestic political order is based will not be at stake.

Vidal noted that much of the responsibility falls upon the United States, which must eliminate policies that impact negatively on Cuba, particularly the policy of unilateral sanctions.

"It is also important to discuss the issue of the US naval base in Guantanamo, in eastern Cuba, which Washington has maintained against the will of the Cuban people and its government," she said.

Radio and TV broadcasts that violate international communications norms must also be included.

Delegations from Cuba and the United States held official talks on January 21 and 22 to discuss issues such as illegal migration, and the course to re-establish diplomatic relations and open embassies in the two countries' capitals.

ENDS

© Scoop Media