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handle is hein.crs/govecux0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Updated March 26, 2021 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 apolicy shift away from sanctions and toward engagement andthe normalization ofrelations. Changes included the rescission of Cuba's designation as a state sponsor of international terrorism(May 2015); the restoration of diplomatic relations (July 2015); and an easing of restrictions on travel, remittances, trade, telecommunications, and banking and financial services (2015 and 2016), accomplished through amendments to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations, administered by the Treasury Department, and the Export Administration Regulations, administered by the Commeice Department. The restoration ofrelations led to increased government-to-government engagement, with over 20 bilateral agreements and numerous dialogues. President Trump unveiled his Administration's Cuba policy in 2017, introducing new sanctions and rolling back efforts to normalize relations. By 2019, the Administrationhad largely abandoned engagement and, from2019 to January 2021, significantly increased s anctions (see discussion below)-especially on travel and remittances-to pressure the Cuban government on human rights and for its support of the Venezuelan government of Nicolas Maduro. Although many observers expect the Biden Administration to shift U.S. policy to focus again on engagement, sanctions imposed undertheTrump Administrationremain in place. During the U.S. election campaign, Biden said he would reverse Trump Administration policies that harmed the Cuban people without advancing democracy andhuman rights. The White House press secretary s aid on March 9 that although a Cuba policy shift was not among the President's top priorities, the Administration was committed to making human rights a core pillar ofpolicy and committed to carefully reviewing policy decisions made in the prior administration, including the decision to designate Cuba as a state sponsor ofterrorism. Cuban Political and Economic Developments. In April 2018, Vice President Miguel Diaz-Canel succeeded Radl Castro as president. Castro continued to head the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) but is scheduled to step down at the next party congress, scheduled for April 16-19, 2021. The selection of Dfaz-Canel, now 60 years old, reflected the generational changein Cuban leadership that began several years ago and marked the first time since the 1959Cuban revolution thata Castro was notin charge of the government. While in power from2006 to 2018, Radl Castro began to implement significant economic policy changes, moving toward a more mixed economy with a stronger private sector; his government's slow, gradualist approach did notproduce major economic improvements. In 2019, Cuba adopted a new constitution that introduced some political and market-oriented economic reforms but continued the state's dominance over the economy and the Communist Party's predominant political role. The Cuban economy is being hard-hit by Venezuela's economic crisis, which has reduced Venezuelan financial support; increased U.S. economic sanctions, which have hurt Cuba's nascentprivate sector; and the economic decline associated with the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The Cuban government reports the economy contracted 11% in 2020. On January 1, 2021, Cub a eliminated its dual currency system, a major reform that was long debated. Economists maintain the currency reform will have high costs initially but should boost productivity and development over the longer term. Cuba's public health responseto the pandemic initially kept cases and deaths low, but both beganto increase in late 2020. As of March 25, 2021, the country reported 408 deaths and almost 70,000 cas es. Cubahas been conducting final trials for two vaccine candidates that it developed, but some critics maintain the government should have acquired vaccines fromabroad while developing its own vaccines. Cuba has a poor record on human rights, with the government sharply restricting freedoms of expression and other basic rights. As of March 1,2021, the human rights group Cuban Pris oners Defenders reported 135 political prisoners, with 69 imprisoned for reasons of conscience. A November2020 government crackdown onthe San Isidro Movement, a civil society group opposedto restrictions on artistic expres sion, spurred a protest by several hundred Cubans, many young artists, and focused international attention on the poor human rights situation. Trump Administration Sanctions. President Trump is s ued a nationals ecurity presidential memorandumin June 2017 that introduced new sanctions, including restrictions on transactions with companies controlled by the Cuban military. The State Department is sued a list ofrestricted entities in 2017, which was updated severaltimes, most recently January 8,2021. The Cuba restricted list includes 231 entities and subentities (ministries, holding companies, hotels, stores, and a wide variety of companies). The Administration imposed a series of s anctions, discussed below, and initiated a campaign highlighting allegations of coercive laborpractices in Cuba's medicalmissions abroad. * Fiforts to Stop Venezuelan Oil Exports to Cuba. Since April2019, the Treasury Department has imposed s anctions on s everal shipping companies and vessels

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