U.S. Includes New Hotels in Cuba to Restricted Entities
Nov. 19 – The escalation of the U.S. blockade against Cuba increases when U.S. President Donald Trump decides to add five new hotels to the list of Cuban entities and sub-entities restricted to Americans, according to Prensa Latina.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Friday that the list would once again be expanded, first released in November 2017 as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to further limit trade with the Caribbean island and Americans’ travel.
As of this Tuesday, and as it already happens with more than 200 entities and sub-entities, the Americans are prohibited to make direct financial transactions with the Gran Hotel Bristol Kempinski, located in Havana; and Grand Aston Varadero Resort, located in the famous seaside resort of Varadero, Matanzas.
The Grand Aston Cayo Las Brujas Beach Resort and Spa, the Gran Muthu Imperial Hotel and the Gran Muthu Rainbow Hotel, all three located in the Jardines del Rey archipelago, are also banned for US travelers.
Cuba has described this list as arbitrary, made up of a diversity of structures supposedly linked to the defence and national security sector.
The list includes the ministries of the Armed Forces and of the Interior, and the Revolutionary National Police, as well as companies, corporations, the Mariel Special Development Zone, and the Mariel and Havana Container Terminals, in addition to a large number of hotels.
The package is part of the many measures adopted by the Trump administration following the Republican’s decision to reverse the rapprochement process initiated by the two countries during the presidency of his predecessor, Barack Obama (2009-2017).
According to a statement by the secretary of state, the date chosen for the new attack on the island was precisely related to the commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the founding of Havana.
Through his statement, Pompeo accused the authorities of the neighboring territory of failures in their economic management and of alleged violations of human rights, at the same time that he spoke again of Cuba’s solidarity with Venezuela and the constitutional government of Nicolas Maduro.
That text again omitted the serious economic damage caused to Cuba by the blockade imposed by Washington almost 60 years ago, a policy condemned once again this month at the UN by the overwhelming majority of the international community and considered the main violation of the human rights of Cubans.
(With information from PL in Spanish)
Written by Radio Grito de Baire
