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| Cuba’s Designation as a Sponsor of Terrorism Snarls Negotiations With U.S. | Cuba’s Designation as a Sponsor of Terrorism Snarls Negotiations With U.S. |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| MEXICO CITY — More than a year ago, the State Department held a meeting with bankers and Cuban officials to deliver an unusual request: please accept Cuba’s money. | MEXICO CITY — More than a year ago, the State Department held a meeting with bankers and Cuban officials to deliver an unusual request: please accept Cuba’s money. |
| The one bank that did business with Cuban diplomats in Washington, M & T Bank of Buffalo, had announced that it would no longer serve foreign missions. Cuba could hardly shop around for a replacement, not least because it is on the American government’s list of nations that support terrorism — forcing Cuban diplomats in Washington to carry out many of their transactions with bundles of cash. | The one bank that did business with Cuban diplomats in Washington, M & T Bank of Buffalo, had announced that it would no longer serve foreign missions. Cuba could hardly shop around for a replacement, not least because it is on the American government’s list of nations that support terrorism — forcing Cuban diplomats in Washington to carry out many of their transactions with bundles of cash. |
| Now, Cuba’s spot on the American list of states that sponsor terrorism is emerging as a major sticking point in the effort to restore diplomatic ties with the United States and reopen embassies that have been closed for nearly five decades. | Now, Cuba’s spot on the American list of states that sponsor terrorism is emerging as a major sticking point in the effort to restore diplomatic ties with the United States and reopen embassies that have been closed for nearly five decades. |
| On Friday, Cuban and American officials met in Washington for a second round of talks aimed at carrying out the vow of President Obama and President Raúl Castro to restore diplomatic relations. The American side reported “meaningful progress,” and more meetings were scheduled for the next few weeks on civil aviation, human trafficking, Internet connections and the delicate issue of human rights. | |
| But whether Cuba should be removed from the state terrorism list is clearly a nettlesome question, with some Republicans openly opposing it, the Cubans demanding it, and the Obama administration trying to keep it as a separate issue. | But whether Cuba should be removed from the state terrorism list is clearly a nettlesome question, with some Republicans openly opposing it, the Cubans demanding it, and the Obama administration trying to keep it as a separate issue. |
| At a news conference on Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry said the question of removing Cuba from the list was not part of the negotiations but instead an evaluation that the department must make based on congressionally mandated criteria. The department must determine whether Cuba in the last six months has been engaged in supporting international terrorist acts. | At a news conference on Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry said the question of removing Cuba from the list was not part of the negotiations but instead an evaluation that the department must make based on congressionally mandated criteria. The department must determine whether Cuba in the last six months has been engaged in supporting international terrorist acts. |
| “That evaluation will be made appropriately and nothing will be done with respect to the list until the evaluation is completed,” Mr. Kerry said, without indicating how long that would take. | “That evaluation will be made appropriately and nothing will be done with respect to the list until the evaluation is completed,” Mr. Kerry said, without indicating how long that would take. |
| Yet Cuban officials have said they could not envision opening a formal embassy in the United States while their country remains on the terror list. The only other countries on it are Iran, Sudan and Syria. | Yet Cuban officials have said they could not envision opening a formal embassy in the United States while their country remains on the terror list. The only other countries on it are Iran, Sudan and Syria. |
| “It would be a contradiction, the re-establishment of diplomatic relations, if Cuba still remains on the list of countries sponsoring international terrorism,” Gustavo Machin, deputy director of American affairs at the Cuba Foreign Ministry, told reporters on Wednesday in Havana, according to Cuban news media reports. | “It would be a contradiction, the re-establishment of diplomatic relations, if Cuba still remains on the list of countries sponsoring international terrorism,” Gustavo Machin, deputy director of American affairs at the Cuba Foreign Ministry, told reporters on Wednesday in Havana, according to Cuban news media reports. |
| After the talks on Friday, Josefina Vidal, a senior Cuban foreign ministry official, told reporters that removing Cuba from the terrorism list was not a prerequisite for diplomatic ties, but she noted that it was a “very important issue” for her government. | After the talks on Friday, Josefina Vidal, a senior Cuban foreign ministry official, told reporters that removing Cuba from the terrorism list was not a prerequisite for diplomatic ties, but she noted that it was a “very important issue” for her government. |
| President Obama announced on Dec. 17 that Cuba’s terror designation would be reviewed. “At a time when we are focused on threats from Al Qaeda to ISIL,” Mr. Obama said, “a nation that meets our conditions and renounces the use of terrorism should not face this sanction.” ISIL is also known as the Islamic State or ISIS. | President Obama announced on Dec. 17 that Cuba’s terror designation would be reviewed. “At a time when we are focused on threats from Al Qaeda to ISIL,” Mr. Obama said, “a nation that meets our conditions and renounces the use of terrorism should not face this sanction.” ISIL is also known as the Islamic State or ISIS. |
| How long that review will take — and its prospects before a Republican-controlled Congress — are another matter entirely. Some Cuba watchers are baffled that the review is not yet complete. | How long that review will take — and its prospects before a Republican-controlled Congress — are another matter entirely. Some Cuba watchers are baffled that the review is not yet complete. |
| “It’s hard to imagine what would take so long,” said Philip Peters, a former Reagan and Bush administration State Department official who now heads the nonprofit Cuba Research Center in Alexandria, Va. “It seems pretty clear they are going to be removed from the list. It’s a mystery.” | “It’s hard to imagine what would take so long,” said Philip Peters, a former Reagan and Bush administration State Department official who now heads the nonprofit Cuba Research Center in Alexandria, Va. “It seems pretty clear they are going to be removed from the list. It’s a mystery.” |
| The presidents of both countries have said that they would attend the regional Summit of the Americas in Panama in April, leading to expectations that the embassies might open before then. | The presidents of both countries have said that they would attend the regional Summit of the Americas in Panama in April, leading to expectations that the embassies might open before then. |
| Both sides now indicate such a timetable might be a challenge. | Both sides now indicate such a timetable might be a challenge. |
| State Department officials have sought to play down the terror list’s importance in the discussions about reopening embassies, declining to say when a review of Cuba’s designation would be completed. | State Department officials have sought to play down the terror list’s importance in the discussions about reopening embassies, declining to say when a review of Cuba’s designation would be completed. |
| “It would be very easy to restore diplomatic relations if they would not link those two things,” a senior State Department official told reporters Wednesday, referring to the terror list and the embassies. | “It would be very easy to restore diplomatic relations if they would not link those two things,” a senior State Department official told reporters Wednesday, referring to the terror list and the embassies. |
| Since 1977, Cuba and the United States have had “interests sections” in their respective capitals. They perform many of the functions of an embassy but do so under decidedly second-class status — and with enough suspicion and rancor that they have long been subject to restrictions, including limits on diplomats’ travel and the problem of finding a bank in the United States. | Since 1977, Cuba and the United States have had “interests sections” in their respective capitals. They perform many of the functions of an embassy but do so under decidedly second-class status — and with enough suspicion and rancor that they have long been subject to restrictions, including limits on diplomats’ travel and the problem of finding a bank in the United States. |
| State Department officials say they have been working on finding a bank for the Cuban interest section in Washington, acknowledging that cash-only transactions are “not safe.” | State Department officials say they have been working on finding a bank for the Cuban interest section in Washington, acknowledging that cash-only transactions are “not safe.” |
| Beyond that, Cuban officials have complained that keeping their nation on the terror list is a political stunt out of sync with larger Middle East threats and the growing number of American travelers who regularly visit the island. | Beyond that, Cuban officials have complained that keeping their nation on the terror list is a political stunt out of sync with larger Middle East threats and the growing number of American travelers who regularly visit the island. |
| If Mr. Obama recommends that Cuba be removed from the list, he must submit a report to Congress certifying that Cuba has not supported international terrorism in the last six months. | If Mr. Obama recommends that Cuba be removed from the list, he must submit a report to Congress certifying that Cuba has not supported international terrorism in the last six months. |
| Members of Congress could put forward a joint resolution to block the move, and some lawmakers have made their opposition to the détente with Cuba quite clear. | Members of Congress could put forward a joint resolution to block the move, and some lawmakers have made their opposition to the détente with Cuba quite clear. |
| “President Obama and his negotiating team need to stop looking so desperate to secure a deal with the Castro regime to open an embassy in Havana, at any cost, before this April’s Summit of the Americas,” Senator Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican and possible contender for the presidency in 2016, said in a statement Tuesday. | “President Obama and his negotiating team need to stop looking so desperate to secure a deal with the Castro regime to open an embassy in Havana, at any cost, before this April’s Summit of the Americas,” Senator Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican and possible contender for the presidency in 2016, said in a statement Tuesday. |
| Even if the House and Senate do not oppose removing Cuba from the terrorism list, the report to Congress includes a 45-day review period. So, while the administration’s conclusion may be known before the summit meeting, the removal of the designation would not take effect until after it. | Even if the House and Senate do not oppose removing Cuba from the terrorism list, the report to Congress includes a 45-day review period. So, while the administration’s conclusion may be known before the summit meeting, the removal of the designation would not take effect until after it. |
| Cuba landed on the list in 1982 for its support of leftist insurgents in Latin America. It has remained on the list since then because, according to a State Department report in 2013, the most recent available, it has provided “safe haven” for Basque separatists and Colombian rebels. | Cuba landed on the list in 1982 for its support of leftist insurgents in Latin America. It has remained on the list since then because, according to a State Department report in 2013, the most recent available, it has provided “safe haven” for Basque separatists and Colombian rebels. |
| The Cuban government, the report also noted, continued to harbor an unspecified number of fugitives wanted in the United States, including Joanne D. Chesimard, who is on the F.B.I.’s list of Most Wanted Terrorists for killing a New Jersey state trooper in 1973 and receiving asylum in Cuba after escaping from prison in 1979. The F.B.I. said Ms. Chesimard, who now goes by the name Assata Shakur, espoused revolution and terrorism against the United States. | The Cuban government, the report also noted, continued to harbor an unspecified number of fugitives wanted in the United States, including Joanne D. Chesimard, who is on the F.B.I.’s list of Most Wanted Terrorists for killing a New Jersey state trooper in 1973 and receiving asylum in Cuba after escaping from prison in 1979. The F.B.I. said Ms. Chesimard, who now goes by the name Assata Shakur, espoused revolution and terrorism against the United States. |
| The State Department report, however, noted that several of the Basque separatists had been repatriated to Spain, and that Cuba was playing host to peace talks between the Colombian government and a major rebel group, known by its Spanish acronym FARC. | The State Department report, however, noted that several of the Basque separatists had been repatriated to Spain, and that Cuba was playing host to peace talks between the Colombian government and a major rebel group, known by its Spanish acronym FARC. |
| “There was no indication that the Cuban government provided weapons or paramilitary training to terrorist groups,” the report said. | “There was no indication that the Cuban government provided weapons or paramilitary training to terrorist groups,” the report said. |
| Some wonder if the terror list designation is a bargaining chip to extract further concessions from the Cubans. | Some wonder if the terror list designation is a bargaining chip to extract further concessions from the Cubans. |
| “It may be a negotiating tactic,” said Christopher Sabatini, an adjunct professor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs and a longtime Cuba scholar. “But for the Cubans, this is a legitimate stumbling block. The risk is they can ask, ‘Are these good faith negotiations when the U.S. is not moving as quickly as it could?’ ” | “It may be a negotiating tactic,” said Christopher Sabatini, an adjunct professor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs and a longtime Cuba scholar. “But for the Cubans, this is a legitimate stumbling block. The risk is they can ask, ‘Are these good faith negotiations when the U.S. is not moving as quickly as it could?’ ” |
| Dr. Sabatini attended the meeting with the bankers last year. State Department officials, he said, pleaded with financial institutions to let the Cubans open accounts, but the bankers balked, having received no assurances they would not face Treasury Department sanctions. | Dr. Sabatini attended the meeting with the bankers last year. State Department officials, he said, pleaded with financial institutions to let the Cubans open accounts, but the bankers balked, having received no assurances they would not face Treasury Department sanctions. |
| A State Department official said there was no government waiver available to circumvent the sanctions laws. M & T Bank declined to comment, saying client information was private. | A State Department official said there was no government waiver available to circumvent the sanctions laws. M & T Bank declined to comment, saying client information was private. |
| Some people, of course, would rather Cuba stay on the terror list. | Some people, of course, would rather Cuba stay on the terror list. |
| Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican who has vowed to block the détente, told a congressional hearing on Thursday that Cuba “poses a clear and present danger to the United States.” | Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Florida Republican who has vowed to block the détente, told a congressional hearing on Thursday that Cuba “poses a clear and present danger to the United States.” |
| “The Castro regime,” she added, “undermines our national security at every turn and reinforces instability in the entire region by exporting their Cuban military and espionage apparatus across the region.” | “The Castro regime,” she added, “undermines our national security at every turn and reinforces instability in the entire region by exporting their Cuban military and espionage apparatus across the region.” |