Cuba and the State Sponsors of Terrorism List

Publication Date: May 2005

Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service

Author(s):

Research Area: Government

Type:

Coverage: Cuba

Abstract:

Cuba was first added to the State Department's list of states sponsoring international terrorism in 1982, pursuant to Section 6(j) of the Export Administration Act of 1979 (P.L. 96-72). At the time, numerous U.S. government reports and statements under the Reagan Administration alleged Cuba's ties to international terrorism and its support for terrorist groups in Latin America. Cuba had a history of supporting revolutionary movements and governments in Latin America and Africa, but in 1992 Fidel Castro stressed that his country's support for insurgents abroad was a thing of the past. Cuba's policy change was in large part a result of Cuba's diminishing resources following the breakup of the Soviet Union and the loss of billions of dollars in annual subsidies to Cuba.

Cuba remains on the State Department's terrorism list with five other countries: Iran, Libya, Syria, Sudan, and North Korea. According to the State Department's Country Reports on Terrorism 2004 (issued in April 2005), Cuba's actions and public statements run contrary to the spirit of the U.N. conventions on terrorism that it has signed. The report asserts that in 2004 "Cuba continued to actively oppose the U.S.-led coalition prosecuting the global war on terrorism." The State Department report asserted that Cuba continued to provide limited support to designated foreign terrorist organizations and to provide safe haven for terrorists and for over 70 U.S. fugitives from justice who continue to live on the island.

Cuba's retention on the terrorism list has received more attention in recent years in light of increased support for legislative initiatives to lift some U.S. sanctions under the current economic embargo. Should U.S. restrictions be lifted, a variety of trade and aid restrictions would remain in place because of Cuba's retention on the terrorism list. Supporters of keeping Cuba on the terrorism list argue that there is ample evidence that Cuba supports terrorism. They point to the government's history of supporting terrorist acts and armed insurgencies in Latin America and Africa. They stress the government's continued hosting of members of foreign terrorist organizations and U.S. fugitives from justice. Critics of retaining Cuba on the terrorism list maintain that the policy is a holdover from the Cold War and that Cuba no longer supports terrorism abroad. They argue that domestic political considerations are responsible for keeping Cuba on the terrorism list and question many of the allegations made in the State Department report.

For additional information on Cuba, see CRS Report RL32730, Cuba: Issues for the 109th Congress, by Mark P. Sullivan. For further information on statesponsored terrorism and U.S. policy, see CRS Issue Brief IB10119, Terrorism and National Security: Issues and Trends, by Raphael Perl; and CRS Report RL32417, The Department of State's Patterns of Global Terrorism Report: Trends, State Sponsors, and Related Issues, by Raphael Perl.