Trump imposes tougher U.S. policy towards Cuba

(Patria) - The White House announced that President Donald Trump signed a memorandum imposing a tough policy of the United States towards communist Cuba and reversing measures introduced by former President Joe Biden, Reuters reported.

The directive will enforce the legal ban on American tourism to Cuba, while simultaneously supporting the economic embargo on the country, the White House said in a fact sheet.
Although Americans cannot visit Cuba for leisure, travel is permitted for
activities, including educational or humanitarian trips.

As one of his first moves after taking office in January, Trump, a harsh critic of Cuba, reversed the Biden administration's last-minute decision to remove the country from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism. He also partially restricted entry for people from Cuba.

According to the memorandum from Monday, Trump has reinstated the ban on direct or indirect
financial transactions with entities controlled by the Cuban military, such as Grupo de Administracion Empresarial S.A. (GAESA) and its subsidiaries, with the exception of transactions that advance U.S. policy goals or support the Cuban people.

Biden had reversed Trump's 2017 order that restricted financial transactions with certain Cuban entities linked to the military and government.

The new memorandum "enforces the legal ban on American tourism to Cuba and ensures
compliance through regular audits and mandatory record-keeping of all travel-related transactions for at least five years," the White House fact sheet states.

It also supports the economic embargo on Cuba and opposes calls in the United Nations and other international forums for its termination, the fact sheet said.