Trump Reinstates Cuba on U.S. State-Sponsored Terrorism List
In one of his first major acts as President, Donald Trump has reversed the Biden administration’s recent decision to remove Cuba from the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism (SSOT). The executive order, issued on 20 January 2025, also reinstates the “Cuba Restricted List,” blocking U.S. financial transactions with Cuban military-run businesses.
This decision overturns former President Biden’s 14 January memorandum, which had followed an agreement mediated by the Vatican and the Cuban Catholic Church. That agreement aimed to incentivise the Cuban government to release more than 550 political prisoners, including notable dissident Jose Daniel Ferrer. While Cuba’s government released 130 prisoners in the days leading up to Trump’s order, the continuation of the phased releases now remains uncertain.
The SSOT list, created in 1979, imposes financial sanctions on countries that “repeatedly provide support for acts of international terrorism.” First added in 1982 during the Reagan administration, Cuba was removed by President Obama in 2015 as part of efforts to normalise U.S.-Cuba relations. However, Trump’s initial term reinstated the designation in 2021, citing alleged harbouring of U.S. fugitives and Colombian guerrilla leaders, despite a lack of concrete evidence according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s 2024 testimony.
Cuba’s inclusion on the SSOT list has far-reaching implications, disrupting international banking and commerce due to fears of U.S. penalties. It has also hurt Cuba’s tourism-driven economy, as visitors from visa-waiver countries face restrictions on U.S. travel after visiting listed nations.
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel called Trump’s decision “an act of arrogance and disregard for truth,” while Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla declared on social media that the move “will cause harm, but it won’t subdue the firm determination of our people.”
With Cuba now reinstated alongside Iran, North Korea, and Syria on the SSOT list, this development is expected to further strain U.S.-Cuba relations and impact the island’s struggling economy.
