(Washington) In an interview broadcast on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described the Communist island as “evil” over the possibility of Cuba returning to the list of countries that support terrorism.
In a Bloomberg broadcast, the foreign secretary confirmed that his department would seek to carry out the request before stepping down on January 20, which could affect Biden’s administration in the future. Diplomatic discussions with Cuba.
“Cuba’s Evil Hand”
“We have not progressed in the decisions that have been made on the positions, but the world has already seen the evil hand of Cuba in many places,” Mike Pompeo said.
It is entirely appropriate for us to question whether Cuba supports terrorism. If so, like any other country that provides material support to terrorists, it must be appointed and conducted in accordance with its conduct.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
President Barack Obama removed Cuba from the list of countries that support terrorism in 2015, a qualification that severely restricts foreign investment. He said at the time that US efforts to isolate Cuba for 50 years had failed.
Donald Trump backed many of the comments made by his predecessor on Communist Island, giving him significant electoral support in Florida, a key state in the US presidential election.
However he acknowledged that their numbers were not enough to defeat President-elect Joe Biden’s agenda.
Joe Biden could remove Cuba from the blacklist, but not immediately, because the State Department would then have to systematically review the situation.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodrguez condemned Mike Pompeo’s “horrific political attacks” on Twitter on Monday, saying they were aimed at “inflicting punishment and suffering on the people.”
Iran, North Korea and Syria are the only three states on the U.S. list of countries that support terrorism since it was withdrawn from Sudan by the Trump administration in December 2020.