Washington, May 29 (RHC) -– The U.S. State Department announced today that Cuba has been officially dropped from its so-called list of state-sponsors of terrorism.

"The rescission of Cuba's designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism reflects our assessment that Cuba meets the statutory criteria for rescission," the State Department said in a statement.

The decision comes after the White House fulfilled a 45-day pre-notification of the change to Congress. U.S. President Barack Obama ordered a review of Cuba's status on the terrorism list as part of a landmark policy shift announced on December 17th, when he and Cuban President Raul Castro said they would seek to restore diplomatic relations and work toward a broader normalization of ties.

In the several rounds of diplomatic talks between Washington and Havana that have followed, Cuba has stressed the significance of its removal form the controversial terror blacklist, in order to further the reestablishment of relations.