Havana, August 23 (RHC)—Nearly a year after advising Americans not to travel to Cuba, the U.S. State Department has downgraded its travel advisory to the island.

On Thursday, the State Department announced the warning was reduced from a Level 3, a category warning Americans to reconsider their trip, to a Level 2, a recommendation that simply advises exercising more caution when visiting Cuba.

In the wake of alleged health incidents that caused a variety of symptoms among diplomatic personnel stationed in Havana, the United States withdrew two-thirds of its diplomatic staff last September and recommended that Americans not travel to the island.

Cuba described the measure as politically motivated.

In January, the advisory was softened somewhat to a Level 3 that advised reconsidering travel to the island.

In the notice issued Thursday, the US authorities maintain their reference to the "attacks against the personnel of the US Embassy in Havana" and do not offer explanations about the causes of this change.

The measure of the Department of State is an acknowledgment of what international specialized bodies and the more than four million tourists that visit the island every year know: Cuba is an extremely safe country.