Biden Extends Emergency Declaration Against Cuba One More Year

In one of his first foreign policy measures toward the island, neighbor extends until 2022, the emergency declaration against Cuba approved in 1996.

Biden sent a proclamation to Congress in which he assured that "there is still a need to continue with this national emergency, which prevents the entry of any vessel registered in the United States into Cuban territorial waters," arguing that such a measure would prevent a massive exodus from the island.

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The proclamation dates back to 1996, when, after repeated warnings, Havana shot down two small planes belonging to a Miami-based organization named Brothers to the Rescue, who, rather than rescuing raftmen in the straits of Florida, its alleged purpose, were violating the Cuban air space, flying over the city of Havana and dropping leaflets with anti-Government messages.

The Cuban government insists on the right to defend its air sovereignty since these planes had violated the island's airspace on several occasions to spread "propaganda material" against the government of then-President Fidel Castro.

 
The proclamation above was issued on March 1, 1996, during the presidency of Bill Clinton (1993-2001), softened but maintained during Barack Obama's mandate (2009-2017). However, he re-established relations with Cuba in 2014.

According to Cuban authorities, the damages accumulated in six decades by the iron fury of U.S. politicians to the island amount to 144 413 million dollars.