Trump reinstates hardline Cuba policy, reverses Biden-era measures
3 Min Read
The new policy tightens oversight of American leisure travel to Cuba through audits and requires travel-related records to be kept for at least five years.
-
A Cuban flag is seen next to an American flag outside the US embassy in Havana, Cuba, on May 17, 2022. (AP)
US President Donald Trump signed on Monday a memorandum reimposing a hardline US stance toward Cuba, reversing policies introduced by former President Joe Biden, the White House announced.
The directive strengthens enforcement of the longstanding US economic embargo on the island and reinstates a ban on tourism. While American leisure travel to Cuba has long been prohibited, previous administrations had allowed certain categories of travel, including educational and humanitarian visits.
The new policy tightens oversight of such visits through audits and requires travel-related records to be kept for at least five years.
Among other measures, the memorandum renews a ban on direct or indirect financial transactions with Cuban military-controlled entities, including the powerful conglomerate GAESA, unless such transactions are deemed to "support US policy goals or benefit the Cuban people." The Biden administration had previously rolled back that restriction, easing financial constraints on the island.
Trump also reaffirmed Cuba’s place on the US list of "state sponsors of terrorism," a designation Biden had sought to reverse during the final days of his term.
The White House said the policy shift is aimed at isolating the Cuban government while allegedly reinforcing support for the Cuban people. It also reasserts US opposition to international calls, including at the United Nations, for an end to the embargo.
Cuba dubs memo as 'criminal act'
Reacting to the announcement, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez condemned the memorandum as a “criminal act” and a violation of human rights, saying it reinforces the economic blockade that has long hindered the island’s development. "It punishes the entire Cuban people," he wrote on X, calling the renewed sanctions the “main obstacle” to the country’s progress.
The Presidential Memorandum vs #Cuba released today by the US government strengthens the aggression & economic blockade that punishes the whole Cuban people and is the main obstacle to our development.
— Bruno Rodríguez P (@BrunoRguezP) July 1, 2025
It's a criminal behavior that violates the #HumanRights of an entire nation. pic.twitter.com/UEne1qt9K2
Venezuela condemns the new memo
Venezuela strongly condemned the memorandum signed by US President Donald Trump on Tuesday, which aims to toughen sanctions on Cuba. In a statement, Venezuela’s Foreign Ministry denounced the move as a continuation of Washington’s decades-long economic blockade, a policy it called inhumane, outdated, and "one of the most evident historical failures of U.S. foreign policy."
The Venezuelan government accused the US of once again defying overwhelming global consensus, pointing to repeated United Nations General Assembly votes demanding an end to the blockade. The memorandum, Venezuela argued, reflects the agenda of a politically obsessed US class that harbors “visceral hatred” toward Cuba’s sovereignty.
Venezuela reaffirmed its solidarity with Cuba, calling the island resilient and committed to defending its sovereignty “with dignity, creativity, and courage.”
