{"id":192789,"date":"2019-01-31T09:55:39","date_gmt":"2019-01-31T14:55:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/?p=192789"},"modified":"2019-01-31T09:55:39","modified_gmt":"2019-01-31T14:55:39","slug":"what-would-happen-if-the-u-s-applies-title-iii-of-the-helms-burton-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/cuba-usa\/what-would-happen-if-the-u-s-applies-title-iii-of-the-helms-burton-act\/","title":{"rendered":"What would happen if the U.S. applies Title III of the Helms-Burton Act?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Donald Trump administration <\/span>is still considering<\/span><\/a> the possibility of allowing the prosecution in the United States of foreign companies that have invested in Cuba and use facilities that were nationalized after the 1959 Revolution.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, several experts have agreed in statements to OnCuba<\/strong> that it is a difficult, intricate process, not exempt of pitfalls but that, in the long run, it can be beneficial for the island.<\/span><\/p>\n

“The biggest headache will be with Europe, or any country investing in Cuba, because of the question of extraterritoriality,” says political analyst Eduardo Gamarra, director of the Department of Politics and International Relations of the Florida International University.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the table is Title III of the <\/span>Helms-Burton Act<\/span><\/a>, enacted in 1996 by former President Bill Clinton. The application of this title has been suspended continuously for periods of six months since then, after a negotiation with the European Union.<\/span><\/p>\n

Title III allows U.S. citizens at the time of nationalization or foreigners \u0336 including Cubans \u0336 who have subsequently obtained that nationality, to claim compensation before a U.S. court from those foreign companies that have invested or use the nationalized facilities that belonged to them.<\/span><\/p>\n

Currently there are almost <\/span>6,000 claims<\/span><\/a> worth 1.8 billion dollars, not counting the accumulated interests, filed with the Federal Claims Settlement Commission (USFCSC).<\/span><\/p>\n

While U.S. citizens have been able to present claims to the commission, foreigners who did not have nationality at the time of the interventions have been prevented from doing so, because when the law was enacted, it was agreed to “freeze” the claims of Cuban-Americans and prioritize those of U.S. citizens at the time of nationalization, with the idea of \u200b\u200blater making them equal in other circumstances. This never happened.<\/span><\/p>\n

If Title III comes into force, that situation disappears. And the problems begin.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: Alexandre Meneghini \/ Reuters.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The details of Title III<\/strong><\/p>\n

To understand Title III, you have to read the IV. This Title is the one that envisages punishments for investors, from the confiscation in the United States of bank accounts of foreign companies that have invested in Cuba to the denial of entry visas to their executives and relatives \u0336 the case of children who study in the United States, for example.<\/span><\/p>\n

When the Helms Burton Act was passed, the then Clinton administration, pressured by the European Union, suspended Title III and did not apply the IV.<\/span><\/p>\n

The idea was to ease the tensions and not to create friction for the then U.S. economic relations with its European allies, Canada and Japan. Consequently, every six months the president decreed the suspension, until during the administration of Barack Obama and in light of the thaw between the two countries, the president passed that responsibility to the secretary of state. The Trump administration is considering rolling back that decision that is purely administrative.<\/span><\/p>\n

On January 16, for the first time, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced to Congress that the renewal of the suspension would be reduced to 45 days to allow carrying out a careful review of the right to act under Title III in light of the national interests of the United States and the efforts to accelerate the transition to democracy in Cuba.<\/span><\/p>\n

EEUU eval\u00faa permitir demandas por expropiaciones realizadas en Cuba<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n