A few hours after his inauguration as President of the United States on Monday (20), Donald Trump signed an executive order reinstating Cuba on the list of “State Sponsors of Terrorism” drawn up unilaterally by the US State Department.
Unjustifiably, the measure reverses the decision of January 14, when, less than a week before the end of his term, former President Joe Biden removed the Caribbean Island from the list, after the State Department said it found that “the government of Cuba has not provided any support for international terrorism”.
On Monday night, as soon as the announcement was released, Brasil de Fato spoke to young Cubans about the new US president's decision.
“Our people is the one suffering the most”
Diego de la Torre Castro says he found out about the decision when he checked the news on his way out of work at a Red Cross branch in Havana, Cuba’s capital.
“It's really painful to see the President of the United States so arrogant and despotic, so angry with Cuba and our Revolution. It's painful because, in the end, it's the Cuban people who are suffering the most, who feel the consequences of these decisions the most. The truth is painful because it kills illusions, it kills hope.”
Amid his lamentations and anger, Castro says this is a “huge injustice” committed against a people who “have always offered love and international solidarity.” “Wherever necessary, Cuba sends doctors, not bombs, as the commander-in-chief used to say,” he points out. Despite the difficulties, he guarantees he “doesn't lose faith in victory”.
The countries on the list face severe economic and political sanctions. This designation mainly affects a country's ability to engage in international financial transactions or access credit. At the same time, it seeks to prevent investments, as companies or governments that invest in countries on the list could be sanctioned by the United States.
The designation of this list has had serious economic consequences for the island, which is going through a deep financial crisis and is targeted by a variety of blockade strategies Washington established.
José González works as a tour guide while looking after his sick mother. The crisis of recent years, aggravated by the economic asphyxiation the blockade causes, means that the medicines the state provides free of charge are becoming increasingly scarce and difficult to get.
“[The blockade] It's nothing new, but it's still painful. It's a measure that seeks to create terror. There's nothing as terrifying as being suffocated, and that's what not only the list, but the entire blockade does: it suffocates the Cuban people. They're trying to kill us simply because we don't do what they say."
Like all Cubans, González's reality, day after day, is marked by the suffocating blockade. Without hiding his anger, he says “They're not interested in human rights, freedom, or anything they defend in their speeches. It's impossible to defend rights or freedom while strangling people."
Shortly after hearing about the decision, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel described Trump's decision as “an act of arrogance and contempt for the truth” in a post on his X account, stating that it is a measure that seeks to strengthen “the cruel economic war against Cuba for dominance.”
“This act of mockery and abuse confirms the discredit of the US government's lists and unilateral mechanisms of coercion. The legitimate and noble cause of our people will prevail once again,” he declared.
'America's Golden Age'
During his inauguration speech, Trump said that a new “America’s New Golden Age begins now” and announced a “tide of change”, adding that he would reverse 78 of the Biden administration's “destructive and radical executive actions”, which he called one of the worst in history.
“Today I will sign a series of historic executive orders. With these measures, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of common sense. It's all about common sense,” said the far-right tycoon.
Displaying his usual histrionics and theatrics, after his inauguration at the Capitol, Trump held a rally at the iconic Capital One Arena, where a hundred supporters of his MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement were waiting for him. “Fight, fight, fight” – the same words he had said after the assassination attempt he suffered during his campaign – was the chant with which the crowd greeted him.
Sitting at a table set up in the middle of the stadium and surrounded by cheers from the crowd, Trump began signing his first executive orders, promising to start changing the country.
He reversed Biden’s 78 executive orders on a wide range of issues, including the removal of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism, an executive order that required federal agencies to apply prohibitions on sex discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity, and the sanctioning of Jewish settlers who illegally and violently occupied Palestinian land in the West Bank.
Edited by: Leandro Melito
