"Unforgettable" - Alexis Esquivel

US - Cuba Relations
Archive: 2016-2017

Proyecto de resolución H.Res.664 y una visión manipulada de la justicia  12/15/2017 Descubriendo Verdades: "promovieron dentro de la Cámara de Representantes un proyecto de resolución denominado H.Res.664, mediante el cual pretenden procurar la extradición desde Cuba hacia Estados Unidos de un grupo de ciudadanos norteamericanos cercano a las 70 personas, entre los que sobresalen los casos de Joanne Chesimard, William Morales y Charles Hill, entre otros." [Siempre el odio del afro.]

¿QUÉ SE TRAE TRUMP ENTRE MANOS CON CUBA?  12/8/2017 Esteban Morales: " Por ello, la batalla que libra hoy Cuba, es más que nunca, no solo una batalla propia. La actual política de Trump la hace girar dentro de una órbita en la cual, la Isla puede brindar solidaridad, recibirla más que nunca e incrementar sus alianzas, para evitar que Estados Unidos logre ahogarla. Por eso, el núcleo fundamental de la estrategia política de Cuba hoy, no es simplemente defenderse de Trump, sino aliarse con todas aquellas fuerzas que desean liberar al mundo de la a actual política de Estados Unidos."

Airbnb and Trump’s measures against Cuba  11/14/2017 On Cuba: "Among the self-employed that will suffer most directly from Trump’s measures are the owners of homes and rooms for rent for tourists, faced by a possible scenario of a drastic decrease in visitors from the United States. Many of them offer their services on the U.S. Airbnb platform, which promotes accommodations in private houses and which has experienced a notable growth in Cuba since it got to the island in 2015. A report by the company published in June – days before Trump announced the sanctions that took effect last Thursday – recognized that since Airbnb started operating on the island in the spring of 2015 more than 22,000 rooms had been included in the booking site and some 40 million dollars had been paid to the Cuban hosts."

U.S. sanctions damage Cuban entrepreneurs  11/13/2017 On Cuba: "The U.S. government measures, which restrict trips to Cuba and doing business with enterprises linked to the Cuban Armed Forces and Intelligence Services, have taken effect. Cuban and U.S. analysts are of the opinion that their further effects (since they have already considerably affected the quality of bilateral relations) will damage the Cuban economy, in the state-run sector as well as the non-state: the private sector which the Trump administration says it protects is already suffering with this decision."

It’s your Cuba policy, Miami Republicans. You can’t blame Obama now.  11/10/2017 Miami Herald: "They must be applauding from Havana because the policy aimed to hurt the government ensures quite a workload for them instead of the fledgling entrepreneurial class, thanks to Trump and the Cuban Americans in Congress who had a hand in pressuring Trump to abandon engagement. Miami’s Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart even used their votes on healthcare to negotiate with Trump on Cuba. “Taking away people-to-people puts the trips back in the hands of babysitters,” says Maria de los Angeles Torres, a Chicago-based Cuban-American professor who has traveled to Cuba for research and family visits for decades."

Nuevas regulaciones de EE.UU. contra Cuba, ¿Una ayuda a los cuentapropistas?  11/10/2017 El Toque: "Si alguien le dijo al presidente Donald Trump que las más recientes medidas contra Cuba de los departamentos del Tesoro y el Comercio de su país, iban a favorecer al pueblo cubano y a sus emprendedores, le mintió. Son, en toda la línea, una vulgar y torpe política que agrede la voluntad y deseo de cambio que existe mayoritariamente en ambas orillas."

Congresistas cubano-americanos aplauden las sanciones de Donald Trump a Cuba pero dicen que esperaban fuesen más severas  11/9/2017 Isla Local: "“Está claro que las personas dentro de la burocracia que apoyan la política cubana de la administración anterior siguen socavando al presidente Trump”, aseguró el republicano Díaz-Balart."

List of Restricted Entities and Subentities Associated With Cuba as of November 9, 2017  11/9/2017 State Department: "Below is the U.S. Department of State’s list of entities and subentities under the control of, or acting for or on behalf of, the Cuban military, intelligence, or security services or personnel with which direct financial transactions would disproportionately benefit such services or personnel at the expense of the Cuban people or private enterprise in Cuba. For information regarding the prohibition on direct financial transactions with these entities, please see the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control website and the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security website."

White House implements new Cuba policy restricting travel and trade  11/8/2017 WaPo: "The Obama changes were widely supported by U.S. businesses. Engage Cuba, a national business coalition that supports lifting the embargo and expanding trade and travel, called the new regulations a “more convoluted, confusing and counterproductive approach to Cuba policy” that will hurt the Cuban private entrepreneurs it claims to be helping, and abandon U.S. leadership to Russian efforts to regain influence in the hemisphere."

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS RELATED TO CUBA  11/8/2017 OFAC 

What Trump’s Cuba crackdown will look like  11/8/2017 Miami Herald: "However, Miami Republican lawmakers who had cheered Trump’s more restrictive Cuba policies were openly critical of the new regulations Wednesday, saying they did not go far enough in punishing the Cuban government."

Cubans Are Starting Small Businesses, but the U.S. Is Hurting Them  11/8/2017 Alternet: "All over downtown Havana, we saw signs of this small business renaissance, with refurbished rooms for rent and boutique eateries boasting live salsa music and high-quality meals for about $10. State-run hotels and restaurants, notorious for bad food and bad service, now face competition from well-run family businesses. Unfortunately, the U.S. is now rolling all that back. And Cuba’s burgeoning private sector is already feeling what they call “the Trump effect.”"

Uncle Sam blacklists Cuban hotels, businesses, agencies  11/8/2017 Along the Maleco: "Below is the U.S. Department of State’s list of entities and subentities under the control of, or acting for or on behalf of, the Cuban military, intelligence, or security services or personnel with which direct financial transactions would disproportionately benefit such services or personnel at the expense of the Cuban people or private enterprise in Cuba."

5 things to know about the new Cuba policy  11/8/2017 Cuba One: "At the same time, Cuba has made it easier for U.S. citizens to repatriate to Cuba with over 13,000 returning since 2014. Under a “no weight limit” and “tax free” policy, many are returning with shipping containers full of construction supplies to help family members start private businesses like casa particulares or paladars. And, they’re bringing millions of U.S. dollars with them as capital. It’s an important and fundamental shift — Cuban Americans are seeing a future in building a new Cuba."

Gobierno de EEUU niega visas a Lizt Alfonso Dance Cuba y obliga a cancelar gira  11/4/2017 Cuba Debate: "Lizt Alfonso Dance Cuba tenía previsto presentar Latido, su más reciente coreografía, pero el Departamento de Estado decidió negarle la entrada a los bailarines que integran el grupo danzario, solo por ser cubanos."

Cuba’s Cultural Sector Slammed By Partial Closure of US Embassy  11/2/2017 Huff Post: "On September 29, 2017, the US State Department ordered a partial closure of the US Embassy, resulting in a complete shutdown of operations in the consular section. All visa processing services were indefinitely suspended. The justification for the decision was based on unexplained health incidents affecting US diplomats and spies serving in Havana over the last year. Despite opposition from both sides, including opposition from the American Foreign Service Association, the US embassy in Havana effectively suspended over half of its services indefinitely. The result of this seemingly benign foreign policy decision is a starkly human one. Over 100,000 Cubans and their families are waiting for their visa applications to be processed."

“El gobierno de EEUU cierra y Cuba abre”  10/26/2017 On Cuba: "El canciller cubano, Bruno Rodríguez, acaba de anunciar en Washington un paquete de medidas que benefician a los cubanos residentes en el exterior. Por su parte, una nota del ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores informa además que el gobierno “continuará estudiando nuevas medidas de actualización de su política migratoria”."

Gobernador de Florida promueve duras sanciones comerciales contra Cuba y Venezuela  10/5/2017 Cuba Debate: "El gobernador de Florida, Rick Scott, anunció hoy que presentará un proyecto de ley que “prohibe estrictamente” al estado, incluyendo todas sus agencias estatales, invertir en cualquier compañía que realice negocios con el gobierno venezolano del presidente Nicolás Maduro. Durante su discurso de inauguración de la Cumbre Latinoamericana 2017, dijo que también va a “asegurarse” de que empresas locales que comercian con el gobierno cubano de Raúl Castro “no reciban fondos federales”."

A ‘Sonic Attack’ on Diplomats in Cuba? These Scientists Doubt It  10/5/2017 NYT: "Dr. Leighton said contagious anxiety or another psychogenic contributor couldn’t be ruled out. “If you make people anxious that they’re under attack from an ultrasonic weapon, those are the symptoms you’ll get,” he said."

Cuba, sus válvulas de presión y la candela  10/5/2017 Cartas desde Cuba: "El endurecimiento de la política hacia Cuba se produce al mismo tiempo que el presidente y algunos de sus más cercanos colaboradores son investigados por el Congreso sobre la “trama rusa”, un tema que le costó el cargo al Director del FBI. El cierre total de la emigración de Cuba hacia EEUU vino de la mano de una trama sobre armas fantásticas que dejarían sordos a los diplomáticos estadounidenses. Así que la política hacia Cuba podría estar siendo dictada por uno de esos “investigadores”, el Senador cubano-americano Marco Rubio, quien hoy defiende al presidente, a pesar de la enemistad que los separó durante la campaña de nominación."

EEUU no reembolsará pagos de visa y cancelará citas de entrevistas en La Habana Read more here: http://www.elnuevoherald.com/noticias/mundo/america-latina/cuba-es/article177185301.html#storylink=cpy  10/5/2017 Nuevo Herald: “La embajada en La Habana cancelará todas las citas de entrevistas para visas de inmigrantes y no inmigrantes que ya estén programadas. Los ciudadanos cubanos, al igual que los ciudadanos de otros países, pueden solicitar visas en cualquier embajada o consulado estadounidense del mundo, pero deberán estar físicamente presentes en ese país”, señala un comunicado del Departamento de Estado obtenido por el Nuevo Herald."

Strong potential for a right-wing Cuban false flag attack on US embassy staff in Havana  10/2/2017 Wayne Madsen Report: "Former diplomats assigned to the U.S. Interests Section in Havana, the forerunner of the present U.S. embassy in the Cuban capital, believe reports of hearing and other medical problems afflicting U.S. embassy staffers in Havana may be caused by malevolent actions of right-wing Cuban plants acting under direction of right-wing Cubans in south Florida."

Trump Prolongs Blockade Against Cuba by Another Year  9/8/2017 teleSUR: "Under the blockade, however, business relations are restricted and there are new taxes on travel to Havana."

The broader implications of Washington’s new Cuba policy  7/25/2017 Caribbean Intelligence: "Speaking to diplomats to try to understand the broader implications of this, and in the absence of relevant US interlocutors, uncertainty prevails as to whether this means that the Trump directive opens the door to further change, making in reality the new Cuba policy potentially far more substantive."

El Bloqueo Redux: Trump's Cuba Policies Strike a Familiar Chord  6/22/2017 Rolling Stone: by Alan Aja - "Trump's new Cuba policy directives may not be, in the political aggregate, as draconian as he boasted, but they remain irresponsible, immoral measures, with disproportionate effect on our island relatives and working-class Cuban-Americans alike. Elected Cuban-American officials, Republican or Democrat, who support this move should pay in the election booth, while Cubans, resident and U.S.-side, marginalized to privileged, should continue organizing across race, gender and class lines to end el bloqueo's repressive contours once and for all."

NSU Professor Explains Trump’s Moves On Cuba  6/22/2017 New Journal and Guide: "Dr. Geoffroy de Laforcade, a Professor of Latin American and Caribbean History at Norfolk State University, is among supporters of the Obama policies. De Laforcade shared his views on Trump’s efforts with the GUIDE immediately after President Trump made his speech, with Senate and House Republicans at his side, before Cuban American exiles who supported his candidacy in 2016."

Fate of Annual HBCU Cuba Programs Unclear  6/22/2017 Afro: "Wickham told the AFRO that once the federal government rolls out the new regulations he will ensure the trips he leads to Cuba adhere with the new policy. Until then, he said, those trips will continue until the administration tells him his groups cannot go as journalists and/or educators."

Cuban Government: We Will Never Return Assata Shakur to U.S.  6/21/2017 All Black Media: "Gustavo Machin, the deputy director of American affairs at the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told Yahoo News that he has no intention of returning Joanne Chesimard, more notably as Assata Shakur, to the United States. “I can say it is off the table,” Machin said."

OFAC: Lo anunciado no surte efecto aún  6/20/2017 On Cuba: "Los cambios anunciados por el presidente Donald Trump en su política hacia Cuba no entrarán en vigor hasta que los Departamentos del Tesoro y del Comercio de los Estados Unidos ajusten sus regulaciones al respecto. Este proceso debe iniciar en menos de 30 días, pero podría durar “varios meses”, según la Casa Blanca."

Did Trump Revive Failed Cold War Cuba Policy to Buy Rubio’s Loyalty?  6/19/2017 Common Dreams: "What does Trump potentially get out of this deal? Rubio defended Trump from questions raised by former FBI Director James Comey in the Senate Intelligence Committee hearings."

Marazul: President Trump’s June 16 speech and its effects on ‘individual’ travel to Cuba  6/19/2017 Progresso Weekly: "If someone has already made their request for INDIVIDUAL people to people educational travel PRIOR TO JUNE 16, their travel is still OK under this subcategory – NO MATTER when it is to take place and no matter if it has been confirmed yet. No new reservations can be requested in this category as of June 16."

Day of National Shame for Cuba  6/19/2017 Havana Times: by Alberto Jones - "Cuba could and should have promoted the formation of large Cuban-American Joint ventures in potato, rice, corn, citric, fruit, poultry, pig and cattle industries, instead of holding on to millions of fallow acres, while having to import the majority of its foodstuffs.

Cuba Won't Negotiate Trump's New Policy  6/19/2017 The Atlantic: "As a result, the administration paved the way for major companies like Airbnb and Starwood to access the Cuban market, while spurring entrepreneurship among Cuban citizens. Trump’s new policy threatens to stymie this growth while placing high-level U.S.-Cuba negotiations on the chopping block. With Rodriquez now calling Trump’s policy “a grotesque spectacle straight from the Cold War,” it seems the lines of dialogue between top U.S. and Cuban officials have already begun to close—and, with them, the chance to witness the long-term results of improved diplomatic relations."

Understanding the New US Policy on Cuba  6/18/2017 Havana Times: "Policy changes will not take effect until the Treasury and Commerce departments have completed a complete review of the new policy in a process that may take up to 90 days."

8 cosas que NO SABÍAS sobre los tres cubanos mencionados en #Miami por Donald Trump  6/18/2017 Cuba por siempre: "Usted se habrá dado cuenta los elementos en común que tienen estos personajes: Mercenarios al servicio de USA, anexionistas, violentos, rechazados por la población, ignorantes políticos, entre otras. Imaginamos que ahora no le es difícil apreciar su parecido con los extremistas opositores de Venezuela, y entenderá el por qué los cubanos estamos alertas y combativos."

Republicans divided as Trump reverses some Obama Cuba policy  6/17/2017 WaPo: "While anti-Castro conservatives hailed Trump’s partial roll-back of President Barack Obama’s detente, a number of other GOP lawmakers, particularly from farm states, criticized the change as misguided and isolationist. They urged him to ease barriers with Havana that will boost trade and create jobs in both countries."

Trump Demands Cuba Return Assata Shakur  6/17/2017 All Black Media 

How a Crew of Hardliners Hijacked Donald Trump’s Cuba Policy  6/16/2017 Mother Jones: "Rubio had at least one ally inside the bureaucracy: Mauricio Claver-Carone, who is arguably the most vocal pro-embargo activist and lobbyist in Washington, was working on the inside. A onetime Rubio adviser, Claver-Carone has spent most of his adult life blasting the Castro regime for its human rights abuses and fighting any effort to open diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba. As the head of the US-Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee, he lobbied to help defeat several measures in 2005 to permit more humanitarian travel to Cuba and allow toothpaste and soap to be included in gift packages sent to the country."

Trump’s new Cuba policy is extortion on behalf of the Trump Organization  6/15/2017 Intrepid Report: "Trump is re-imposing sanctions on travel to Cuba to further the business interests of his Trump Organization, which wants a piece of the hotel and real estate action in Cuba. By maintaining the economic blockade of Cuba, which includes levying harsh fines on foreign companies doing business in Cuba, Trump is using the White House to advance his own development plans for the island."

Another Miami-White House anti-Cuba Concoction  6/14/2017 Havana Times: "Rather than devoting their time and financial resources to address the monstruous financial crisis that is sinking Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands into the ocean, the massive drug epidemic that is devouring New Hampshire, West Virginia and Ohio, the intractable race-relations and hate that is ravaging the nation or the gun violence in Chicago, Miami Gardens and Jacksonville, they choose to focus on Cuba with none of these intractable social ills."

Ola de reacciones previas a los anuncios de Trump hacia Cuba  6/14/2017 On Cuba: "Según el jefe de la diplomacia estadounidense, el enfoque general de la revisión de la política hacia la Isla ordenada por Trump “es permitir que la actividad comercial y de intercambio con Cuba continúe todo lo posible, porque vemos el lado bueno, vemos los beneficios para el pueblo cubano. Y de algún modo, más adelante, se puede llegar al punto de normalización”."

Ante inminente anuncio, opositores cubanos apoyan cambio de política de EEUU hacia Cuba  6/13/2017 Nuevo Herald: [La plantocracia habla:] "El líder de la organización opositora más grande de Cuba, la Unión Patriótica de Cuba (UNPACU) pidió al presidente Donald Trump que imponga sanciones al gobierno de Raúl Castro, en medio de un anticipado anuncio sobre la política hacia Cuba que se espera este viernes en Miami."

Trump Considers Rolling Back Obama’s Opening With Cuba  5/31/2017 NYT: "President 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 government as justification for a more punitive approach."

Trump anunciaría cambios en política hacia Cuba en junio: ¿cuáles van a ser las medidas?  5/30/2017 Café Fuerte: "Si en definitiva hay un anuncio en junio, numerosos analistas y figuras del ruedo político en Washington consideran que serán medidas moderadas para crear una barrera de control que no tendrá efectos significativos sobre los viajes y las operaciones comerciales en marcha."

Perdue supports expanded trade with Cuba  3/27/2017 Wisconsin State Farmer: "USDA Secretary designate Sonny Perdue is an exceptionally qualified nominee to lead the USDA. Mr. Perdue has long been an advocate of expanding trade with Cuba's $2 billion agricultural import market. We're very optimistic that Mr. Perdue will be confirmed by the Senate and will continue to support American agribusiness by advancing efforts to lift the U.S. embargo on Cuba. In an exchange with committee member Senator John Boozman from Arkansas, Perdue said, "with respect to Cuba, for those of you on the Gulf Coast and those along the East Coast as well as those who have been mentioned by your colleagues in the upper Midwest, I think we would love to have Cuba as a customer in many things."

Cuban Americans in Congress need to stop wrapping themselves in the Cuban flag  3/14/2017 Miami Herald: "If it’s true that U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart tried to trade his vote for “Trumpcare” for a commitment from the administration to take a tough stance on Cuba, then the obsession of Cuban Americans in Congress with U.S.-Cuba policy has hit a new low. Voting for the American Health Care Act is going against the interests of all who need affordable health insurance in South Florida — and Diaz-Balart’s district has the fourth highest number of Obamacare marketplace enrollees in the country."

Opciones de EEUU ante Cuba y Venezuela  3/6/2017 Cuba Encuentro: "Los destinos de Cuba y Venezuela pueden no estar tan separados como parecen a primera vista. Si los Estados Unidos toman medidas para enfriar sus lazos con Cuba, el gobierno en Venezuela podría ser capaz de aferrarse al poder por más tiempo."

Congressmen: the advance of the rapprochement “is inevitable”  2/24/2017 Vistar: "Cochran, meanwhile, affirmed that “there are openings, and winning implies taking risks.” Speaking of the expectations regarding Trump, he joked saying that “some say that we have a spontaneous president…. There will be active debates in Congress,” he forecasted."

Avances en nexos Cuba-EE.UU. deben consolidarse, afirman congresistas  2/22/2017 Radio Taino: "Una delegación del Congreso norteamericano que visita a Cuba desde el domingo ratificó el deseo de la mayoría de los miembros del Capitolio de consolidar las relaciones entre Estados Unidos y la nación caribeña."

Cuba y dos puertos de un estado en EEUU pactan convenios de colaboración  2/20/2017 Nuevo Herald: "El senador republicano por el estado sureño, William Thad Cochran, presidió la firma de los nuevos memorandos, rubricados por el director general de la Administración Nacional de Puertos de Cuba, Manuel Pérez, y representantes de Pascagoula, Mark McAndrews, y de Gulfport, Jonathan Daniels."

Senador aliado de Trump en delegación de congresistas a Cuba  2/19/2017 Café Fuerte: "El senador republicano por Mississippi,Thad Cochran, quien ha respaldado decisivamente a Trump en el Senado, figura en la delegación, que aparece encabezada por uno de los principales promotores de la normalización de relaciones con Cuba, el senador demócrata Patrick Leahy (Vermont), según informó el Consejo Económico y Comercial Cuba-EEUU."

Alabama Port Authority announces deal with Cuban counterpart  2/3/2017 AL.com: "Alabama's Port Authority announced that state and Cuban officials met Thursday in Tampa, where they signed a Memorandum of Understanding described as the first Cuban ports agreement signed on U.S. soil since 1959. The five-year cooperative agreement is based on "a mutual interest in facilitating trade growth," according to the ASPA. The two agencies agreed to collaborate on "port and cargo marketing studies and strategies, engaging in promotion and exhibition activities, and sharing data to the mutual benefit of their respective seaports.""

“El futuro para los emigrantes cubanos va a ser muy difícil”  1/29/2017 On Cuba: "Creo que creará una segunda categoría de cubanos aquí, de cubanos con órdenes de deportación que no van a poder legalizarse. Creo que aumentará mucho las deportaciones a Cuba y que el futuro para los emigrantes cubanos va a ser muy difícil."

Trump's Cuba Negotiator Has Ties to the Island Nation  1/27/2017 Cuba Journal: "Greenblatt himself traveled to Cuba between 2012 and 2013, Businessweek reported in July, to scout future investment potentials for Trump’s company."

Obama and Cuba post White House  1/27/2017 On Cuba: "From the United States, the public relations executive and founder of the CubaOne Foundation, Giancarlo Sopo, also considers that one of the biggest achievements of Obama’s policy toward Cuba was the boost given to Cuban entrepreneurs. He said that under his mandate the country saw a greater expansion of its private sector in more than half a century and that at the start of Obama’s presidency there were 114,000 Cubans registered as self-employed and today there are more than 500,000, and added that that growth wouldn’t have been possible without the measures he initiated in 2009, mainly the expansion of the right to travel and the sending of remittances to Cuba.”"

Trump’s New Cuba Negotiator Fought For Stronger Cuba Ties  1/24/2017 BuzzFeed: "Until December, Jason Greenblatt served as a senior vice president at the Trump Organization and acted as the corporation’s chief legal officer. He was sworn in on Sunday as the White House’s “special representative for international negotiations.” Among that remit will be, according to CNN at the time the position was announced, “working on Israel-Palestinian peace process, the American relationship with Cuba and trade agreements.”

More U.S.-Cuba memorandums  1/18/2017 On Cuba: "The document establishes carrying out technical exchanges on questions of mutual interest and defines the fields where there will be joint work. These include the struggle against terrorism, drug trafficking, the trafficking in persons and cybercrimes."

Top diplomatic negotiator in Cuba warns Trump: 'aggression doesn't work'  1/17/2017 The Guardian: “Aggression, pressure, conditions, impositions do not work with Cuba. This is not the way to attempt to have even a minimally civilised relationship with Cuba,”Josefina Vidal, a foreign ministry department head, told the Guardian."

‘Marielitos’ Face Long-Delayed Reckoning: Expulsion to Cuba  1/14/2017 NYT: "On Thursday, President Obama announced the immediate end of the so-called wet-foot, dry-foot policy, which allowed Cuban migrants to stay in the United States if they reached its shores, special treatment that drew the ire of the Cuban government. The flip side of the deal got far less attention, but it effectively closed one chapter in the tortured relationship between the two countries: Cuba agreed to take back up to 500 criminal Mariel refugees."

Cubans Stranded On Mexican Border After Obama’s 11th-Hour Change  1/13/2017 Huff Post: "But by around 4 p.m., something was wrong. When official word came down that the Obama administration was scrapping the so-called wet foot-dry foot policy that allowed Cuban migrants, Rodríguez said American immigration authorities laughed, cheered and applauded. The officials assured Rodríguez that everyone in line would make it through. But the line barely moved. And by 9 p.m., U.S. authorities at the border said no more Cubans would be allowed to cross."

Cuban-Americans at odds over 'wet foot, dry foot' repeal  1/13/2017 USA Today: ""So many people who have come in these last few years come for different reasons," said Vilches, 68, a retired factory worker. "They come with a different mentality now." That kind of response has angered other beneficiaries of "wet foot, dry foot.""

Is the U.S. Opening to Cuba Dead in the Water?  1/13/2017 Foreign Policy: "But given the members of the transition team, it seems likely that it will be rolled back as far as possible, even at the risk to U.S. security. How far, though, remains unclear."

Will Trump Be Better for Latin America than Obama?  1/13/2017 CEPR: "Asked which US presidential candidate would be better for the region, Ecuadorean president Rafael Correa didn’t hesitate: Trump … because he is so crude that he will generate a reaction in Latin America which will build more support for progressive governments. … We have a US government that has changed little in its policies and has done practically the same as it always has, but has a charming president in Obama."

Cuba’s Raul Castro meets with U.S. Chamber of Commerce president  1/13/2017 Reuters: "The chamber has been urging the Cuban government to sign a number of agreements with major companies such as General Electric (GE.N), negotiated over the last 18 months, before President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20."

Obama Administration Ends Refugee Policy That Favored Cubans  1/12/2017 NPR: "Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla, released a statement saying the existing policy needed to be revamped, not ended. In particular, he said he wanted Donald Trump to reverse the cancellation of the medical professional program when he becomes president next week. Rubio added that he had spoken with Vice President-elect Mike Pence this evening and was "heartened by the fact that in a week we will have a new administration committed to discarding the failed Cuba policy of the last two years."

Miami’s Cuban Jews ponder the meaning of Trump’s pick for international negotiator  1/10/2017 Miami Herald: "“My philosophy, in both business and in life, is that bringing people together and working to unite, rather than to divide, is the strongest path to success,” Greenblatt said in a statement released by the Trump transition team. Nearly 95 percent of Cuba’s Jewish population left the island for the United States after Fidel Castro seized power and established a communist government in 1959."

Trump's Homeland Security Chief Wants to Share Guantanamo Base with Cubans  12/27/2016 Cuba Journal 

China-Cuba Relations: Assessing US Stakes  12/24/2016 The Diplomat: "However, if the Cuban government undertakes reform at structural levels as did Vietnam and China years ago, then China’s investment interest toward Cuba could grow suddenly. Above all, because in a scenario like this, the U.S. could quickly lift the embargo on the island and Cuba could automatically become the main tourist destination in the Caribbean. This would involve multi-million-dollar investment projects in infrastructure that Cuba needs, where Chinese companies could compete in the market against U.S. companies."

A musical bridge from Cuba to the United States  12/24/2016 On Cuba: "Throughout the two years since Havana and Washington announced the reestablishment of relations, art and culture has been one of the spheres with the greatest exchange. Cuban artists have talked to OnCuba about the benefits they have perceived from this."

Plan para presionar a Trump a romper relaciones con Cuba  12/23/2016 Radio Havana: por Arthur González "La evidencia de que los mafiosos estaban detrás del diseño arcaico de tal provocación, fueron sus propias declaraciones en la rueda de prensa ejecutada de inmediato, el 18/12/2016 en Miami. En la misma, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen y Mario Díaz-Balart, en compañía del ex congresista Lincoln Díaz-Balart, expresaron abiertamente: “Esperamos que las concesiones unilaterales de la Casa Blanca al gobierno de Raúl Castro, lleguen a su fin cuando Donald Trump asuma el poder el 20 de enero próximo”." La plantocracia se mobiliza.

Cuba-U.S. Relations in Trump’s Era: Reserved Forecast  12/18/2016 On Cuba: "The majority of U.S. citizens, Cubans and the Cuban-American community support the dialogue and exchange processes with Cuba. The ties woven between Cuba and Miami have today reached a critical mass that guarantees a rejection in Florida of any policy aiming to separate the two principal communities from the Cuban nation."

Reversing Cuba policy seen as a punch in the gut to Latin America  12/17/2016 Miami Herald: " One of the most significant effects of the U.S. détente with Cuba had less to do with relations between the two countries than with helping stop the “pink tide” that was pulsing through Latin America. That’s the message the White House is delivering to the Trump transition team as it warns against rolling back a Cuba policy that has made it easier to work with Latin American nations and undercut the spread of the leftist movement known, for its founder Hugo Chavez, as “chavismo.”"

'The Cubans are sh------ themselves' over Trump  12/3/2016 Miami Herald: "He’s 100 percent a freedom fighter,” said former U.S. Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, whose Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute honored Pence in 2010. “He’s met with former political prisoners. He knows the issue.”

Trump has threatened to rip up the “deal” with Cuba. Would that work?  11/29/2016 WaPo: "Cuba itself has never been interested in opening its doors to U.S. businesses, despite what Cuban officials claim. During the Cold War, Cuba was comfortable trading with the Soviet bloc — it was, after all, subsidized trade. Since then, Cuba has profited from the embargo. The government doesn’t have to make concessions to U.S. businesses, and more important, the embargo gives Cuba leverage when dealing with other foreign investors: The government can offer other nations a business environment free of U.S. businesses."

A U.S.-Cuba Breach Presents an Opportunity for China  11/29/2016 WSJ: "While U.S. remittances total more than all Cuban exports, Beijing’s trade with island is growing fast "

Threatening Cuba Will Backfire  11/29/2016 NYT: "If Mr. Trump’s Cuba policy matches his latest rhetoric, cooperation is likely to wane. That would only embolden hard-liners in the Cuban regime who are leery of mending ties with the United States and are committed to maintaining Cuba as a repressive socialist bulwark. In Mr. Trump, they may find the ideal foil to stoke nationalism among Cubans who are fiercely protective of their nation’s sovereignty and right to self-determination."

Cuba: Now That Fidel is Gone What Comes Next?  11/28/2016 Alternet: "“Why can’t Spain or Mexico give Raúl Castro political asylum?” a source inside the Trump campaign asked in March 2016, a clue as to where Trump’s advisors are thinking: Cuba without the remaining Castro—and without a one-party government, the Communist Party of Cuba. The implication is that Trump’s advisers do not rule out military intervention—and military occupation—of Cuba to achieve this “opening” and move to “democracy” on the island nation."

Donald Trump’s Threat to Close Door Reopens Old Wounds in Cuba  11/28/2016 NYT: "Reversing some of Mr. Obama’s decisions could be legally difficult. Companies like JetBlue, Starwood and Airbnb have invested millions of dollars in time and resources to enter the Cuban market, and did so with the American government’s blessing. “In theory, Donald Trump has the ability to reverse almost everything Obama has done,” said Matthew D. Aho, an adviser on Cuba at the New York law firm Akerman. “In practice, that reversal would be far more complicated from a legal process than most observers realize."

Not Afraid To Ruffle Feathers: How Michael Flynn Became A Trump Confidant  11/18/2016 NPR: "Those countries include, certainly, Russia, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, countries like Cuba, certainly China. And their national security [strategies], if you will; how they view the world... And what I've seen in the last couple of administrations is just a real failure to truly connect strategic dots around the world."

¿Mensaje a Trump las maniobras militares que Cuba anunció hace siete meses?  11/16/2016 Cubainformación: "El diario español “El País”, por su lado, en un trabajo titulado “Maniobras militares y políticas en Cuba”, sentenciaba que “las maniobras militares anunciadas por Cuba (...) parecen subrayar que el régimen también está dispuesto a regresar a las barricadas ideológicas” (4). Curioso. Porque estas “maniobras militares” cubanas -el llamado “Ejercicio Estratégico Bastión 2016”- nada tienen que ver con el triunfo electoral de Donald Trump (5). Se realizan en la Isla cada cuatro años, siempre en el mes de noviembre. Y la fecha exacta para este año fue anunciada por el Presidente Raúl Castro, el pasado 16 de Abril (6). Es decir, ¡hace siete meses!"

Cuba Ventures on Why an Incoming Trump Administration Will be Good for U.S.-Cuba Rapprochement  11/10/2016 Cuba Ventures: "Even the Trump-friendly corporate lobbying group ALEC (American Legislative Exchange Council) has called for the normalization of U.S. trade relations with Cuba, which would be consistent with its free market agenda."

A Trump attempt to reverse Obama’s Cuba policies could be complicated and costly  11/10/2016 Miami Herald: "In recent weeks, Trump has said he can reverse Obama’s executive orders and will “unless the Castro regime meets our demands. Not my demands — our demands. Those demands will include religious and political freedom for the Cuban people, and the freeing of political prisoners.” In an effort to win Cuban-American votes, he repeated that message in Miami just a week before the election. But on previous occasions he said normalization was fine — although he thought Obama’s policies didn’t go far enough in pushing U.S. interests and that he intended to get a better deal. “During the campaign he also said 50 years of the same policy was enough, and then he started fund-raising and came to Miami and was convinced to take a different approach,” said Gutierrez, who is now chairman of the Albright Stonebridge Group and favors engagement with Cuba."

Trump Presidency Could Affect US-Cuba Policy  11/9/2016 NBC Miami: "There was a rousing cheer in Little Havana on Election Night as Donald Trump stumped Hillary Clinton in the race for the White House. Many Cuban-Americans believe a Trump presidency means a return to a hardline policy against Cuba."

Cubans Fear Trump to Reverse Opening, Army Drills Announced  11/9/2016 AP: "The first Bastion Strategic Exercise was launched in 1980 after the election of Ronald Reagan as U.S. president, according to an official history. The announcement by Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces in red ink across the top of the front page of the country's main newspaper Wednesday said the army, Interior Ministry and other forces would be conducting maneuvers and different types of tactical exercises from the 16th to the 20th of November. It warned citizens that the exercises would include "movements of troops and war materiel, overflights and explosions in the cases where they're required." Speaking of Cuba's leaders, Communist Party member and noted economist and political scientist Esteban Morales told the Telesur network: "They must be worried because I think this represents a new chapter.""

Trump win prompts fear, uncertainty in Cuba  11/9/2016 France 24: "However, Cuba will probably not be a "priority issue" for Trump, said Michael Shifter, head of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based think tank. "It's not clear if he will try to roll back policy toward Cuba that is fairly popular, according to polls," he said. One thing is certain: with the Republicans retaining control of Congress, the 54-year-old embargo is probably not going away anytime soon."

Cuba Calls Military Exercises after Trump Victory in USA  11/9/2016 Havana Times: "During the long campaign, at first Trump assured that the thaw with Cuba was positive and that it was necessary to continue the rapprochement between both countries. However that position began to change when Trump traveled to Miami and threatened to reverse the rapprochement between Washington and Havana. “The next president can change that policy and that’s what I’m going to do unless the Castro regime lives up to our demands,” Trump said during a speech in Florida in September."

Cuba announces military exercises after Trump elected U.S. president  11/9/2016 Reuters: ""His most recent statements indicate that he may not immediately reverse commercial, economic and political engagement, but may increase conditionality as a cost of expansion," said John Kavulich, head of the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council Inc. In a mid-October interview with CBS in Miami, Trump said he would do anything necessary "to get a strong agreement" with Cuba's government, without providing specifics."

“Disidencia cubana”: Washington está botando el dinero  10/25/2016 Cuba estrella: “Los cientos de millones mal empleados deberían servir por sí solos para poner fin a este disparate. Sin más demora. Pero hasta ahora Washington ha preferido continuar entregando el dinero sin preocuparse por los logros de los proyectos, al punto de despertar la sospecha de si su interés es realmente premiar los fracasos.”

U.S. subversion against Cuba continues  10/24/2016 Radio Cadena Agramonte: "Even while the ink of Barack Obama’s new Presidential Directive on Cuba is not yet dry, an announcement for new subversive projects against the island, containing all usual ingredients of the typical aggressive and interventionist policies of the past, was published on the U.S. State Department website on October 21. The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, is offering funding opportunities for projects which supposedly promote “democratic changes” in the spheres of civil, political and labor rights in Cuba."

Trump on Cuba  10/23/2016 CBS4: CBS4 Interview

Foro Online: Ponerle rostros y nombres al bloqueo  10/19/2016 Invasor: "“El componente psicosocial de los efectos del bloqueo, también es tenido en cuenta y se han desarrollado investigaciones que lo refieren. Pudiéramos citar la realizada por especialistas de la Biblioteca Nacional José Martí, en la que se refieren no solo los daños que este ocasiona a los profesionales cubanos, sino, también, a los bibliotecarios norteamericanos. Instituciones como el Centro de Investigaciones Psicológicas y Sociológicas (CIPS), han desarrollado proyectos investigativos en los que son abordados directa o indirectamente dichos impactos."

Trump’s Cuba policy could prove a setback for travel industry  10/16/2016 Travel Weekly: "In stark contrast to Trump’s remarks, Obama said during his Havana visit that relaxed travel restrictions were already helping the Cuban people. “Since we’ve made it easier to travel to Cuba, a lot more Americans are visiting the island, you may have noticed,” Obama said in Havana. “More Americans coming to Cuba means more customers for your businesses. More Americans using the dollar will mean that they will spend more, as well. There will be more channels for you to import supplies and equipment. More Americans will be able to buy your arts, crafts, food, Cuban-origin software as well as, of course, Cuban rum and cigars.”"

Clinton And Liberal Media Scandalized That Trump Explored Doing Business With Cuba  10/4/2016 The Daily Caller: "In brief, Trump’s “crime” consisted of this: back in 1998 (when the Clinton Administration in their push to end the embargo, was urging American companies to partner with the Castro regime) Trump Resorts and Hotels hired a consulting firm named Seven Arrows headed by Richard Fields to explore the possibility of opening a hotel in Cuba. In other words, while unconvinced of its merit, Trump was willing to at least explore business opportunities then being promoted by the Clinton administration."

Donald Trump’s Cuban-American Problem  10/4/2016 Huff Post 

A New Cuba: President Obama’s plan normalized relations. It may also transform the nation.  10/3/2016 New Yorker 

With Cuban exile leaders mum, Clinton launches Miami radio attack ad over Trump's embargo-breaking  10/3/2016 Politico: "In a sign of the “uncomfortable” spot Donald Trump has put them in, the Miami Republican leaders who support a hard line on Cuba don’t want to talk about a news story detailing how one of the GOP presidential nominee’s companies helped violate the U.S. embargo of the communist island. So Hillary Clinton is making sure voters hear all about it in South Florida — home to a sizable population of pro-embargo Republican Cuban-Americans — in a 30-second radio ad called “Two Trumps.”

Report That Donald Trump Did Business in Cuba Ups the Ante in Florida  10/1/2016 NY Times: "“Trump’s business with Cuba appears to have broken the law, flouted U.S. foreign policy, and is in complete contradiction to Trump’s own repeated, public statements that he had been offered opportunities to invest in Cuba but passed them up,” Mr. Sullivan said."

PayPal Froze My Account After I Bought A Cuban Cigar  8/18/2016 Forbes: "According to the new rules, U.S. citizens traveling abroad are allowed to consume Cuban goods. A tourist visiting Mexico City can buy a glass of Cuban rum or an expensive Cuban cigar and pay for the purchase with a major credit card such as MasterCard or Visa. Current restrictions place a $100 limit on Cuban cigars brought back to the U.S. by people visiting Cuba. The ban has been lifted on goods purchased and consumed by tourists traveling outside of the U.S.\r\n\r\nI’ve written about Amazon successfully entering Mexico’s e-commerce market. In a country with low credit card penetration PayPal has a chance to expand its business in Mexico’s e-commerce market.\r\n\r\nMy account, however, is still frozen. So, apparently, PayPal is still figuring out how to do business in Latin America when it comes to allowing users to purchase and enjoy Cuban goods."

Paypal halted a transaction because it contained the word "Cuba"  8/17/2016 BoIng Boing: "The lesson: don't use forbidden words when sending someone money via PayPal. Better yet, use Bitcoin instead."

Shaq Shoots for Diplomacy in New Role as Sports Envoy to Cuba  6/25/2016 Cuba Journal 

Cuba-U.S. Relations Facing New Challenges  6/14/2016 Havana Reporter: "Vidal outlined during a press conference to review the meeting that further expert meetings in the fields of hydrology, the environment, law enforcement and compliance and the battle against both people and drug trafficking would also be held."

Reentry Through Resistance: Détente with Cuba was Accomplished Through Resistance and Solidarity, Not Imperial Benevolence  5/31/2016 Counterpunch: "While the White House may want the public to believe that Cuba is reentering the system of states because the U.S. has decided to be benevolent in ending a harmful policy, the real reason is that the U.S. government no longer had a choice in the matter. After a half-century of attempting to overthrow Cuba’s communist government, the U.S. has failed to decimate the culture of resistance that exists in Cuba."

The Washington Post: No a compromisos con los represores uniformados del pueblo cubano  5/31/2016 Café Fuerte 

On U.S.-Cuba military cooperation, proceed with caution  5/30/2016 Washington Post: "Legislation pending in Congress would block full military-to-military normalization until Cuba democratizes. At a time when Cuba’s beleaguered civilian democracy activists need unequivocal U.S. moral support, the administration and outside supporters of its Cuba policy should not be eager for potentially compromising relationships with the Cuban people’s uniformed oppressors."

Lawyer: Fugitive loyal to Cuban revolution  5/19/2016 Along the Malecon: "In late March of 2016, Huck Magazine published a lengthy article that contained numerous inaccuracies regarding Mr. Hill, an African-American human rights activist who was forced to flee the United States in 1971 due to political repression. Mr. Hill has since resided in Havana as a guest of the Cuban government. The Huck Magazine article so egregiously mischaracterizes and misstates Mr. Hill’s positions that we are necessarily compelled to immediately enter into litigation against Huck Magazine for fraud, libel and false light. Neither Mr. Hill nor his undersigned attorney were duly notified by Huck Magazine of their intent to publish this article."

Cuban security officials toured Key West drug-war center  5/4/2016 Miami Herald: "That officer, Lt. Cmdr. Derek Cromwell, escorted the four-member Cuban security delegation on a familiarization tour of the so-called Joint Interagency Task Force South, or JIATF-South, at the Truman Annex of the U.S. Navy base in Key West on April 21, according to Tidd’s spokeswoman, Army Col. Lisa Garcia. They got a briefing on the work of the multi-agency, multi-national organization that has been described as Southcom’s command center in the war on drugs, toured the Joint Operating Center there and met with representatives of 18 different countries assigned there."

Deportaciones a Cuba, el tsunami que viene  4/22/2016 Marti Noticias: "Unos 28.400 cubanos con antecedentes penales están en indefinida espera para ser deportados de Estados Unidos, muchos de ellos bajo la supervisión de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas."

Renowned Cuban Pro-Reform Economist Fired as Chill  4/21/2016 AP: "Reached by The Associated Press on Wednesday, Perez confirmed his dismissal by center director Humberto Blanco for having unauthorized conversations with foreign institutions and informing "North American representatives" about the internal procedures of the university. The dismissal letter described Perez, 56, as "irresponsible" and "negligent" for continuing to engage in unauthorized activity after warnings from his superiors. It also accused him of receiving unauthorized payments for a study of the South Korean economy and said he was barred from returning to work for at least four years."

U.S. Government Cultural Mission arrives in Cuba today  4/18/2016 OnCuba: "Usher, Dave Matthews, William “Smokey” Robinson, actor and producer Kal Penn, and Cuban-American dancer Lourdes López are some of the members of a U.S. delegation that will pay a 4-day visit to Cuba as part of a cultural mission. The group, which will start its visit today, includes the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) co-chairs George Stevens, Jr. and Margo Lion; National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu; National Endowment for the Humanities Chairman William Adams; and Smithsonian Secretary David Skorton."

Cuba calls Obama visit 'an attack' as Communists defend ideology  4/18/2016 Counterpunch: "President Raul Castro referred to the United States as "the enemy" in the opening speech of the party congress over the weekend and told Cubans to be alert to U.S. attempts to weaken the revolution. The congress, held every five years, must make decisions about the future of Cuba's elderly leadership and the progress of market-style economic reforms adopted in 2011 that allowed more small businesses. The measures have been only partially implemented, amid resistance from hard-liners who distrust market economics and fear detente with the United States at a time when Cubans are increasingly vocal about their needs."

Proyecto del Departamento de Estado se parece sospechosamente a un plan de infiltración  3/30/2016 Cubadebate: "¿Están el Departamento de Estado y la Casa Blanca en la misma longitud de onda? ¿Coexisten en el mismo gobierno? ¿La misma ciudad? ¿La misma constelación? La pregunta surge porque, menos de una semana después que el presidente Barack Obama asegurara personalmente a su homólogo cubano, Raúl Castro Ruz, que Washington “no tiene ni la capacidad ni la intención de imponer un cambio en Cuba” y que Estados Unidos “no impondrá nuestra política o sistema económico a ustedes”, el Departamento de Estado ha anunciado que va a dar a alguna organización emprendedora de EE.UU. $753 989 dólares para entrenar hasta 30 “jóvenes líderes emergentes de la sociedad civil cubana” […] “para dirigir y hacer crecer organizaciones de la sociedad civil que apoyen activamente los principios democráticos en Cuba” –exactamente el tipo de gobernancia que la Habana no quiere que le hagan tragar."

The economic impact of changes in U.S.-Cuba relations  3/23/2016 On Cuba: "Some time ago, the sustained affirmation that the blockade was the largest external obstacle to the country’s development was sometimes questioned by different sectors inside and outside of Cuba. However, what has happened since 17 December 2014 seems to show the weight of that argument."

La primavera cubana: proxima estacion del tren Obama  3/22/2016 AfroCubaWeb: por Roberto Zurbano - "El pensamiento institucional y político de la Revolución están siendo impactados por la velocidad, el peso y el alcance histórico de tales propuestas, pero no reconoce ni incorpora los análisis y propuestas del pensamiento crítico social más reciente, que ha elaborado visiones defensivas y proyectivas de la futura sociedad cubana, cierto es que desafiantes y críticas con el pensamiento político más público y formalizado en Cuba, pero buena parte de ellas resultan complementarias y renovadoras de las bases originales de este propio pensamiento oficial, por su afán participativo, emancipatorio y anticapitalista. Las propuestas de Obama demandan muchas, urgentes y novedosas respuestas cubanas, no solo gubernamentales, combinándose a corto, mediano y largo plazo, dentro y fuera de la isla y del propio Estados Unidos."

In speech to Cubans, Obama seeks to bury Cold War rivalry  3/22/2016 USA Today: "I am here to bury the last remnants of the Cold War in the Americas. I am here to extend a hand of friendship to the Cuban people," Obama said."

Obama and Raúl Castro’s Awkward Embrace in Cuba  3/22/2016 New Yorker: "The cognitive dissonance of what is taking place in Cuba cannot be understated. On Monday, President Barack Obama and his delegation, which includes Secretary of State John Kerry and national-security adviser Susan Rice, stood at attention in Havana’s Revolution Square as the Cuban military band played “The Star-Spangled Banner,” with enormous murals of Che Guevara and Camilo Cienfuegos behind them. Obama laid a wreath at the foot of the square’s memorial to José Martí, the nineteenth-century poet and national hero who has long been considered the “apostle” of Cuban independence. Later, presiding over an American-style town-hall meeting with the reporter Soledad O’Brien at a Havana microbrewery, the President asked questions and dispensed advice to new Cuban entrepreneurs and introduced them to Brian Chesky, the youthful co-founder of Airbnb, getting him to boast, for the audience’s edification, that his eight-year-old Internet-based company was valued at an astonishing twenty-five billion dollars. The message was clear: the future is yours."

Full Transcript: US President Obama's Speech to People of Cuba  3/22/2016 VOA 

Obama's Visit to Cuba: Dangers and Benefits to The Cuban Revolution  3/21/2016 Real News: "One of the very first things that Raul Castro said is that if the embargo were moved today, Cuba would still have tremendous internal difficulty through its own fault. So Cuba has been involved in deep reflection and debate of looking at the differentiation between the party, the state, the government, and the people. It has been involved in a lot of self-critical reflection of the irony of having educated one of the world's most educated populations by all of the [inaud.] of the UN and the independent bodies on their children scoring high in math and science, and great cultural production. A major country in the world on biotechnology and cancer vaccines, and all of this."

Entrevista exclusiva a Luis Silva sobre la conversación de Pánfilo con Obama  3/20/2016 CiberCuba: "Con un insólito “as” sacado de debajo de su manga, rompiendo todas las barreras del protocolo mas esteril, o de la arenga vacía, la Casa Blanca ideó la posibilidad de una conversación telefónica “real” entre el Presidente de los Estados Unidos de América y Pánfilo, ese inteligente y empático personaje humorístico creado por el actor Luis Silva para el popular espacio semanal “Vivir del Cuento”, y que ha devenido en la representación más genuina del cubano de a pie."

PRESIDENT OBAMA CALLS CUBAN COMEDIAN (Panfilo)  3/19/2016 YouTube: "President Obama just answered Luis Silva Pánfilo's call from Havana! Pánfilo has one of the most popular comedy TV shows in Cuba, and he regularly attempts to call the President — but never seems to get through. Here Panfilo is talking to the President and cant believe his luck. President Obama is the first President to visit Cuba since 1928."

La agenda de Obama en Cuba  3/17/2016 On Cuba: "Adicionalmente, Rhodes adelantó que se espera el anuncio de acuerdos bilaterales durante los tres días de la visita. “Queremos hacer irreversible el proceso de normalización y queremos usar el viaje para acelerarlo y crear más oportunidades de contacto con el pueblo cubano”."

EEUU permitirá más viajes y operaciones con dólares a Cuba  3/15/2016 CaféFuerte: "El paquete de medidas, que entrará en vigor este miércoles, amplía la capacidad de los estadounidenses de viajar a Cuba, impulsa los intercambios comerciales y reduce las barreras para que los cubanos realicen operaciones bancarias y financieras en dólares, incluyendo a bancos que desde terceros países pueden transferir dinero a cuentas en entidades estadounidenses a nombre de cubanos residentes en la isla."

Obama trip to Cuba shows move away from focus on dissidents  3/11/2016 AP: ""The fact of the matter is we don't have any expectation that Cuba is going to transform its political system in the near term," said deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes, one of the architects of Obama's Cuba policy. "Even if we got 10 dissidents out of prison, so what? What's going to bring change is having Cubans have more control over their own lives."

Ningún analista serio en EEUU apoya los programas de “promoción de la democracia” para Cuba  3/7/2016 Cubadebate: "De eso hablamos en Washington con dos expertos estadounidenses de incuestionable independencia de opinión frente a lo que dice o hace el gobierno de la Isla, y de asombroso nivel de información sobre la realidad cubana, optimistas frente a los acontecimientos recientes en las relaciones Cuba-EEUU, pero sin arrebatos triunfales. Se trata de Fulton Armstrong, quien fuera el superpoderoso coordinador de Inteligencia Nacional para América Latina – el analista de más alto rango de la Comunidad de Inteligencia de EE.UU-, y Geoff Thale, director de programas en la Oficina de Washington para América Latina (WOLA), quienes aceptaron la invitación de Cubadebate para conversar con franqueza sobre los asuntos que están en la agenda de los dos países."

How Obama Could Bring Internet to Cuba  2/18/2016 Inverse: "After meeting twice with Cuban officials in Havana, Daniel Sepúlveda, the U.S. point man working to get telecom into the country, told The Miami Herald that “at this point, the biggest thing that is missing is trust.”"

Obama to meet Raul Castro, dissidents on historic trip to Cuba  2/18/2016 Reuters: "He’ll be meeting with dissidents, with members of civil society, including those who certainly oppose the Cuban government’s policies," Obama's deputy national security adviser, Ben Rhodes, told reporters."

Cuba returns dummy Hellfire missile mistakenly received  2/13/2016 AP: "The government statement said the missile had come to Cuba as a result of "error or mishandling" in its country of origin. "For Cuban authorities, the arrival in the country of U.S.-made military equipment that hadn't been declared as such on the cargo manifesto was worrying," the government said. The equipment was "duly conserved and taken care of" and once the U.S. government officially informed Cuba that the missile had been shipped there by mistake and the U.S. wanted to recover it, Cuba began proceedings to return the missile, the government said. A team of U.S. experts traveled to Cuba to inspect the missile and brought it back to the U.S. on Saturday, the government said."

What Do Cubans Think of Normalization With the United States?  2/9/2016 The Nation: by Sujatha Fernandez - "They’re divided, by generation and class, over whether it will be a good thing."

Frank Mora lays out counterinsurgeny plan for Cuba  2/7/2016 Quotha: "Democracy's nemesis, Frank Mora, is once again using FIU's pseudoacademic, SOUTHCOM-funded Latin American and Caribbean Center (which a colleague in Florida once aptly described to me as a gusanera) to promote counterinsurgency plans against Latin American democracy. See here for resources on FIU's "Strategic Culture" program to label all left-leaning countries in the hemisphere infantile and in need of (further) U.S.-led militarization, which would be laughable if it weren't so dangerous. Click the photo below to see the article titled WHINSEC may train Cuban students. And go to SOA Watch's website and read a little bit about SOA/WHINSEC if any of this sounds like hyperbole to you."

La variable Agresividad Mediática en el conflicto Cuba - Estados Unidos  2/2/2016 Esteban Morales 

Cuban negotiator says US presidential election may endanger thaw in relations  1/12/2016 Guardian: "Vidal said she had read many opinions by academics, intellectuals and even members of the US Congress saying that the detente is “irreversible” but she insisted that “it isn’t that absolute”. Among things Obama could do before he leaves the presidency, she said, would be to allow the use of the American dollar in bilateral business and permit direct financial transactions between banks in the United States and Cuba. Vidal said Obama could also eliminate policies that he has power over as chief executive, such the so-called “wet foot, dry foot” policy that allows Cubans who step on American soil to stay in the US and apply for permanent residency."

Cuba to attend security conference with U.S. for first time  1/12/2016 Miami Herald: "The Cuban government’s decision to accept an invitation to the Caribbean Nations Security Conference in Jamaica this month follows other relatively small but symbolic forms of military engagement between countries that normalized relations in December 2015, said Marine Corps Gen. John F. Kelly, the commander of Southern Command. “We’ve normalized now and, regardless of how we think of each other in terms of politics, we have very, very common challenges,” Kelly said in an interview two days before he ends his tenure as commander of U.S. military operations in the Southern Hemisphere."