Washington, Aug 4 (RHC)-- The Interfaith Foundation for Community Organization (IFCO)/Pastors for Peace on Thursday urged President Joe Biden to remove Cuba from the US list of States sponsoring terrorism.
In a request on the Internet, IFCO-Pastors for Peace expressed to Joe Biden its deep concern about hostile US policies towards Cuba, which have remained unchanged.
The Interfaith Foundation´s letter reminded Joe Biden such policies really impact the Cuban people´s welfare and that while his recent easing of travel and remittance restrictions have been quite helpful, it is still not enough.
According to IFCO, “a positive and principled measure you (Biden) could easily roll out is to remove Cuba from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism.”
In Trump’s last days serving as president, then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo again included Cuba in the list, from which the Obama-Biden administration withdrew in 2015.
Following an all-important review conducted under Obama-Biden´s administration, it was certified the Cuban Government had not provided any support to international terrorism.
“The new inclusion of Cuba on the terrorism list by Trump was a fully-political move to please conservative Cuban-Americans,” said the foundation, one of the most active ones in the United States in favor of lifting the US blockade imposed on Cuba for over 60 years.
Being included in the list, Cuba is subjected to international financial sanctions and restrictions limiting its capacity to make transactions, including those necessary to continue its efforts to fight the Covid-19 pandemic and reactivate its domestic economy.
Far from supporting terrorism, Cuba has a long history of providing health care and saving lives globally.
Since 1963, over 600,000 Cuban health workers have been given medical services in 160 nations, fighting diseases including Ebola and Covid-19.
However, instead of working with Cuba to provide health care worldwide amid a global pandemic, the US government is applying sanctions and trying to stifle Cuba´s economy by imposing a hostile blockade.
“President Joe Biden, you could remove Cuba from the terrorism list out of a clear blue sky. We ask you to do so”, the IFCO-Pastors for Peace concluded.
