PRESS STATEMENT NED PRICE, DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON MAY 16, 2022 The Administration’s policy towards Cuba continues to focus first and foremost on support for the Cuban people, including their human rights and their political and economic well-being. Today, the Administration announced measures to further support the Cuban people, providing them additional tools to pursue a life …

In July, the people of Cuba bravely and spontaneously took to the streets to demand change from their government: respect for human rights, greater freedom of expression, and an end to economic mismanagement by an authoritarian regime that has failed to meet their most basic needs.  The Cuban regime responded with violence, censorship, arrests, and …

Today, the United States is imposing sanctions on the Cuban Ministry of Interior (MININT) and Minister of Interior General Lazaro Alberto Álvarez Casas for their connection to serious human rights abuse under Executive Order 13818, which builds upon and implements the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act. MININT is designated for being responsible for, complicit …

The State Department has designated Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism for repeatedly providing support for acts of international terrorism in granting safe harbor to terrorists. The Trump Administration has been focused from the start on denying the Castro regime the resources it uses to oppress its people at home, and countering its malign …

QUESTION:  Hello.  We’re here today with Mike Pompeo, the 70th Secretary of State.  And we’re beginning the new year with a conversation with him.  Mr. Secretary, thank you very much for giving us time today. SECRETARY POMPEO:  David, it’s great to be with you.  Happy New Year to you. QUESTION:  So did you get any …

PRESS STATEMENT MICHAEL R. POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE JANUARY 1, 2021 Today, the Department of State is announcing the addition of Banco Financiero International S.A. (BFI) to the Cuba Restricted List, effective upon publication in early January. BFI is a Cuban military-controlled commercial bank that benefits directly from financial transactions at the expense of the …

PRESS STATEMENT MICHAEL R. POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE DECEMBER 21, 2020 Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added three Cuban military-owned companies to its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List).  All property and interests in property of these entities that are in the United States or in the possession or control of persons …

U.S Department of the Treasury Press Releases December 18, 2020 Washington – Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Ex-Cle Soluciones Biometricas C.A. (Ex-Cle C.A.) for materially supporting the illegitimate President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro Moros, including by providing goods and services that the Maduro regime used to carry …

  When will the embassy reopen? The embassy has remained open to provide emergency and mission-critical visa services throughout the pandemic. Our first priority continues to be American citizen services.  In September 2020, we resumed scheduling nonimmigrant and immigrant visa interview appointments, giving priority to certain  categories of visas .  Appointments for some categories of routine visas, including visitor …

PRESS STATEMENT MICHAEL R. POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 24, 2020 Yesterday, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) took action to remove Cuba’s military from the process of sending remittances to Cuba. Once these changes to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) are effective, persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction will no longer be authorized to process remittances to …

Today, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added Cuban national Luis Alberto Rodríguez López-Calleja (also known as López-Callejas) to OFAC’s list of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons. Rodríguez López-Calleja is the head of the Cuban military-owned conglomerate Grupo de Administración Empresarial S.A. (GAESA). All assets, property, and interests of property of …

U.S. Department of State For Immediate Release September 23, 2020 SPECIAL BRIEFING VIA TELEPHONE September 23, 2020 The Miami Hub Moderator:  Greetings to everyone from the U.S. Department of State.  I would like to welcome our participants who have dialed in from the United States and across the region.  This is an on-the-record conference call …

U.S Department of State Press Statement Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State September 23, 2020 Today, the Department of State is announcing the creation of the Cuba Prohibited Accommodations (CPA) List. The CPA List includes 433 properties that are owned or controlled by the Cuban regime or certain well-connected insiders. The Treasury Department’s Office of …

U.S Department of the Treasury Press Releases September 23, 2020 WASHINGTON – Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) amended the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) to further implement the President’s foreign policy to deny the Cuban regime sources of revenue. The changes restrict lodging at certain properties in Cuba; importing …

As someone who has lived on the island and watched how the Cuban Communist regime portrays its medical missions program for several years, I regularly read articles about Cuba sending doctors and nurses overseas to fight COVID-19 with interest.  I am compelled to comment because many articles present a case that skirts significant facts while …

JULY 15, 2020 The United States government welcomes the Pan American Health Organization’s decision to initiate an independent review of its role in the Mais Medicos program, pursuant to which PAHO provided well over a billion dollars to Cuba. The United States and other key PAHO member states have actively worked with PAHO leadership to …

U.S. Independence Day 2020 Remarks by U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Mara Tekach in Havana, Cuba July 4, 2020 “Proclaim Liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” Leviticus 25:10 is inscribed in the Liberty Bell, the iconic United States symbol of Liberty.  U.S. Americans sounded the Liberty Bell in celebration when the U.S. Declaration …

Catherine (bottom right), working as a Diplomat in Residence, speaking to graduate students at Florida International University (Photo courtesy of Catherine) Catherine Rodriguez, who leads the Consulate General in Lahore, Pakistan, is a Cuban American who grew up in Miami and has served in a variety of roles in the Foreign Service – both at the Agency for International Development and the Department …

JUNE 26, 2020 On the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, we honor and support victims and survivors throughout the world. We observe this day on the anniversary of the date on which the UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment came into effect; 166 countries including …

JUNE 20, 2020 The United Nations Human Rights Council, now comprised of Venezuela and recently, Cuba and China, has long been and remains a haven for dictators and democracies that indulge them.  It is a grave disappointment to those genuinely seeking to advance human dignity. Even so, the Council’s decision to vote yesterday on a …

Human rights defender José Daniel Ferrer has spent most of his adult life imprisoned for trying to make Cuba a free nation.  Ferrer has worked tirelessly to ensure all Cubans have a voice in the affairs of their own country.  The Castro regime has responded by beating and torturing Ferrer, harassing and threatening his family …

PRESS STATEMENT MICHAEL R. POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE JUNE 3, 2020 Today, the United States Government is announcing the addition of seven new subentities to the Cuba Restricted List. These seven subentities disproportionately benefit the Castro dictatorship, a regime which uses the profits from these businesses to oppress the Cuban people and to fund its interference in Venezuela, at the expense …

U.S. Embassy Havana May 12, 2020 PRESS STATEMENT The Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service works closely with law enforcement agencies to protect and maintain the security and safety of foreign missions in the United States. Regarding the events at the Cuban Embassy in Washington DC of April 30, 2020, this is a joint investigation …

Special Briefing Office Of The Spokesperson March 23, 2020 MODERATOR ONE:  Okay, at the end of the opening remarks, if you want to ask a question, please send me a text message at [redacted] and I will add you to the queue.  With that, I’ll turn it over to [Moderator Two]. MODERATOR TWO:  Hey, everybody.  …

MARCH 11, 2020 Secretary Michael R. Pompeo will deliver on-camera remarks on the release of the 2019 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, March 11, 2020, in the Press Briefing Room at the U.S. Department of State. Assistant Secretary Robert Destro of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor will …

FACT SHEET OFFICE OF THE SPOKESPERSON JANUARY 21, 2020 “The relationship between the United States and Costa Rica is grounded in our mutual commitment to democracy, security, and prosperity. Costa Rica continues to be a regional model of democracy and respect for human rights, as well as a leader in the fight against transnational crime and …

U.S Department of State Readout Office of the Spokesperson January 21, 2020   The following is attributable to Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus: Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo met yesterday with Brazilian Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo on the margins of the Counter Terrorism Ministerial in Bogota, Colombia. Secretary Pompeo and Foreign Minister Araujo highlighted our close partnership in the global …

Press Statement Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State January 16, 2020 Today, the United States Senate passed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, also known as the USMCA, bringing us one step closer to fulfilling President Trump’s promise to modernize and update trade agreements. Mexico has ratified the USMCA, and we now look forward to the Canadian Parliament’s consideration of this agreement. The …

In 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) to identify common rights and freedoms for all people in all nations. An American, former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, chaired the UN Human Rights Commission that drafted this landmark document. Chairwoman Roosevelt needed only to look at our own deep …

PRESS STATEMENT MICHAEL R. POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 18, 2019 The U.S. government strongly condemns the Cuban regime’s unconscionable detainment of human rights defender José Daniel Ferrer, founder of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU).  We call on the Castro regime to immediately disclose Mr. Ferrer’s location and condition, to treat him humanely, and …

Press statement Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State July 5, 2019 On behalf of the people of the United States of America, I congratulate interim President Juan Guaido, the National Assembly, and the people of Venezuela as you celebrate the anniversary of your independence. Once again, the Venezuelan people are besieged by dictatorship, undesired foreign …

U.S Department of the Treasury Press Releases June 4, 2019 Treasury and Commerce Implement Changes to Cuba Sanctions Rules WASHINGTON – Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) unveiled amendments to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) to further implement the President’s foreign policy on Cuba. These amendments complement changes …

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Office of the Spokesperson Official For Immediate Release  MEDIA NOTE April 12, 2019 The United States Takes Action to End Cuba’s Malign Influence on Venezuela Today, the United States sanctioned four companies for operating in the oil sector of the Venezuelan economy and identified nine vessels as blocked property, pursuant to …

U.S. Embassy Havana Media Note U.S. Embassy Havana Havana, Cuba March 15, 2019 Decreasing B2 Visa Validity for Cuban Nationals Effective March 18, 2019, the United States will reduce the B2 visa validity for Cuban nationals to three months with a single entry.  U.S. immigration law requires that U.S. visa fees and validity periods be …

U.S. Mission to the United Nations and the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor To Launch Campaign on Cuba’s Political Prisoners at the United Nations Notice to the Press Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC October 12, 2018 Ambassador Kelley E. Currie, U.S. Representative on the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, …

The Wrongful Detention of Tomas Nunez Magdariaga in Cuba Press Statement Heather Nauert Department Spokesperson Washington, DC October 4, 2018 The United States is gravely concerned about the physical health of Cuban democratic activist Tomas Nunez Magdariaga, who has been on a hunger strike for more than 50 days in protest against his wrongful imprisonment. …