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handle is hein.crs/govdcwq0001 and id is 1 raw text is: K. Updated December 11,2020 Cuba: U.S. Policy Overview Since the early 1960s, when the United States imposed a trade embargo on Cuba, the centerpiece of U.S. policy toward Cuba has consisted of economic sanctions aimed at isolating the Cuban government. In 2014, the Obama Administration initiated a policy shift away from sanctions and toward engagement and the normalization ofrelations. Changes included the rescission of Cuba's designation as a state sponsor of international terrorism(May 2015); the restorationof diplomatic relations (July 2015); and an easing ofrestrictions on travel, remittances, trade, telecommunications, and banking and financialservices (2015 and 2016), accomplished through amendments to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR), administered by the Treasury Department, and the Export Administration Regulations, administered by the Commerce Department. The restoration ofrelations led to increased government-to-government engagement, with over 20 bilateral agreements and numerous dialogues. President Trump unveiled a new policy toward Cubain 2017, introducingnew sanctions and rolling back efforts to normalize relations. By 2019, the Administration had largely abandoned engagement and had increased sanctions to pres sure the Cuban government onhumanrights and for its support of the Venezuelan government of Nicolds Maduro. In 2020, the Administration significantlyincieased restrictions on travel and remittances. Cuban Political and Economic Developments. In April 2018, MiguelDiaz-Canel, who was serving as first vice president, succeeded RadlCastro as president. Castro continues to head the Cuban Communist Party until2021. The selection of Diaz-Canel, now 60 years old, reflected the generational change in Cuban leadership that began several years ago and marks the first time since the 1959 Cuban revolution that a Castro is not in charge of the government. While in power from2006 to 2018, Raid Castro began to implement significanteconomicpolicy changes,moving toward a more mixed economy with a stronger private sector, buthis government's slow, gradualist approach did not produce major economic improvements. In 2019, Cuba adopted anew constitution with such changes as an appointedprime minister to oversee government operations; limits on the president's tenure (two five-year terms) and age (60, beginning first term); and market-oriented economic reforms, including the right to private property and foreign investment promotion. The new constitution also ensuredthe state's dominance over the economy and the CommunistParty's predominantrole. The Cuban economy is being hard-hit by Venezuela's economic cris is, which has reduced Venezuela's support for Cuba; increased U.S. economic s anctions, which have hurt Cuba's nascentprivate s ector; and the economic decline associated with the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The Economist Intelligence Unit forecast an 8.3% economic contractionin 2020. Cuba announced some economic reforms in July 2020, and on December 10, 2020, President Diaz-Canel announced that Cuba would eliminate its dualcurrency systemon January 1, 2021, a major reform that long has been debated. Cuba's public health response to the pandemic appears to have beeneffective. As of December 10,2020, the country reported 136 deaths, with a mortality rate of 1.2 per 100,000 people (among the lowest rates in the hemisphere), according to Johns Hopkins University. Cuba has provided international as sistance for pandemic response by sending over 3,700 medicalprofessionalsto almost40countries. Cuba has a poor record on human rights, with the government sharply restricting freedoms ofexpressionand other basic rights. As ofDecember 1,2020, the human rights group Cuban Prisoners Defenders listed 134 political prisoners, with 77 imprisoned forreasons of conscience. A November2020 government crackdown on the San Isidro Movement, acivilsociety groupopposedto the government's restrictions onartistic expression, spurred a protes tby severalhundred Cubans, many young artists, and galvanized international attention on humanrights in Cuba. Trump Administration Sanctions. President Trump issued a nationalsecurity presidential memorandumin June 2017 that introduced new sanctions, including restrictions on trans actions with companies controlled by the Cuban military. The State Department is sued a list of restricted entitiesin 2017, which has beenupdated severaltimes, most recently in September2020. The Cuba restricted list includes 230entities andsubentities, including 2ministries, 5 holding companies and 54 of their subentities, 111 hotels, 2 tourist agencies, 5 marinas, 10 stores in Old Havana, and 41 entities serving defense and security sectors. Since 2019, the Adminis tration has imposed increasingly strong sanctions. In addition to those below, it has highlighted allegations ofcoercive laborpractices in Cuba's foreign medicalmissions. In May2020, the State Department (pursuant to Section 40A of the Arms Export Control Act) added Cuba to its annual list of countries certified as n ot cooperatingfully with U.S. antiterrorism efforts for the first time since 2015. Efforts to Stop Venezuelan Oil Exports to Cuba. Since April2019, the Treasury Department has imposed sanctions onseveralshipping companies and vessels that transported Venezuelan oilto Cuba. In July 2019, it sanctioned Cuba's state-run oil import/export company. Lawsuits Related to ConfiscatedProperty. Effective May 2, 2019, the Administration allowed the right to file lawsuits against those trafficking in confiscatedproperty in Cuba pursuant to Title III of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-114). Lawsuits can be brought by any U.S. national,

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