Gerard Dion's Blog, page 2
November 27, 2017
Trump’s Cold-War Politics Are Hurting Ordinary Cubans
• November 15, 2017
Trump’s Cold-War Politics Are Hurting Ordinary Cubans
Sujatha Fernandes, The Nation
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It has been almost three years since Barack Obama declared détente with Cuba, initiating, with Cuban President Raúl Castro, a normalization of relations between the two countries. But since his election last fall, Donald Trump has attempted to revert to an obsolete and aggressive Cold War policy by strengthening the economic embargo and promoting regime change. Trump’s ill-conceived measures and bombast cannot undo all of the advances in US-Cuba relations that have been made in the past few years. But they have added to the insecurity and daily struggles of Cubans in a time of economic difficulty and the resurgence of the right in the region. Those difficulties are compounded as the Cuban government addresses the lingering effects of Hurricane Irma.
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Under Trump, new rules for Cuba, yet again
• November 12, 2017
Under Trump, new rules for Cuba, yet again
Emiliy Mendrala, The Hill
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In March 2016, Havana was electric in anticipation of President Obama’s historic visit. Cuba was awash with a spirit of hope that relations between our two countries were finally on a path toward normal. Now, the Trump administration has released new, restrictive travel rules for Cuba — and yet, with two years of progress under our belt, it is clear a full reversal is impossible.
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Cuba attack mystery may be Cold War flashback, officials say
• November 12, 2017
Cuba attack mystery may be Cold War flashback, officials say
Ali Watkins, Politico
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WASHINGTON — U.S. intelligence officials are closely studying Cold War-era Soviet technology as they seek to determine whether an electronic weapon was used to disorient and injure 24 American officials in Cuba earlier this year.
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It’s your Cuba policy, Miami Republicans. You can’t blame Obama now.
• November 12, 2017
It’s your Cuba policy, Miami Republicans. You can’t blame Obama now.
Fabiola Santiago, El Nuevo Herald
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Way to go, Miami Republicans. You’re really socking it to engagement in your dreams.
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What Trump’s Cuba crackdown will look like
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http://www.miamiherald.com/news/natio...
• November 08, 2017
What Trump’s Cuba crackdown will look like
Patricia Mazzei, Nora Gámez Torres, and Mimi Whitefield, Miami Herald
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The days of Americans legally staying at Ernest Hemingway’s Old Havana haunt, the Hotel Ambos Mundos, or making purchases at Havana’s only luxury shopping arcade, will be over under new regulations the Trump administration issued Wednesday as part of a crackdown on U.S. business and travel to Cuba.
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Rubio and other Miami Republicans blame ‘bureaucrats’ for softening Trump Cuba policy
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/cuba/article183486726.html
• November 08, 2017
Rubio and other Miami Republicans blame ‘bureaucrats’ for softening Trump Cuba policy
Patricia Mazzei, Miami Herald
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The night before the White House planned to announce new regulations restricting U.S. business and travel in Cuba, the biggest champions of President Donald Trump’s tighter policy — Miami’s Republican lawmakers in Congress — were in the dark.
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Cuban government claims more tourists visiting island than ever before
• November 07, 2017
Cuban government claims more tourists visiting island than ever before
Hatzel Vela, WPLG
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HAVANA, Cuba – The Cuban government claims more tourists than ever are now visiting the island, including Americans.
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Cuba’s Cultural Sector Slammed By Partial Closure of US Embassy
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...
Cuba’s Cultural Sector Slammed By Partial Closure of US Embassy
Isabel Albee, 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.
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Trump administration expected to defend embargo on Cuba in United Nations vote
Press Clips
• October 31, 2017
Statement on Diaspora Travel to Cuba
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The Cuba Study Group welcomes the Cuban government’s decision to remove several barriers to the diaspora’s ability to travel to the island. Eliminating the requirement that Cuban émigrés seek approval to use their Cuban passports for travel to Cuba removes a redundant and arbitrary obstacle to their return to their country of origin. By making it easier for the descendants of Cuban citizens born abroad to claim Cuban citizenship, the Cuban government has laid the groundwork for greater engagement of Cubans around the world in island affairs. Finally, removing prohibitions on certain groups of undocumented Cuban migrants from returning enables the reunification of long-separated families.
• October 31, 2017
Trump administration expected to defend embargo on Cuba in United Nations vote
PBS News Hour
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WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will defend America’s decades-old economic embargo on Cuba in a United Nations vote this week, the State Department said Tuesday, in a reversal from the Obama administration that reflects deteriorating U.S.-Cuban relations.
• October 31, 2017
Cuban-American lawmakers call for inquiry on U.S. government response to sonic attacks
Franco Ordoñez, Miami Herald
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WASHINGTON–Unsatisfied with the lack of answers about mysterious sonic attacks on U.S. and Canadian diplomats and their families in Havana, a group Cuban-American House members are calling on the Government Accountability Office to investigate the State Department’s actions on the matter.
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November 7, 2017
Cuba policy on Cuban-American travel to the island has political and economic tentacles
Cuba policy on Cuban-American travel to the island has political and economic tentacles
Mimi Whitefield and Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald
New travel regulations that Cuba announced over the weekend appear designed to make sure a steady flow of Cuban-American visitors continues.
October 2017
October 30, 2017
