{"id":320011,"date":"2025-03-22T16:44:56","date_gmt":"2025-03-22T20:44:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/?p=320011"},"modified":"2025-03-22T16:44:56","modified_gmt":"2025-03-22T20:44:56","slug":"trump-and-the-firm-hand-with-cuba-who-pays-the-highest-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oncubanews.com\/en\/cuba-usa\/trump-and-the-firm-hand-with-cuba-who-pays-the-highest-price\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump and the firm hand with Cuba: who pays the highest price"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few hours after taking office, President Donald Trump laid the cornerstone to continue the sanctions policy against Cuba that he pursued during his first term. By <\/span>reinstating the island on the list of state sponsors of terrorism<\/span><\/a> \u2014 Biden <\/span>had removed it<\/span><\/a> six days earlier \u2014 he clearly established the direction he wants to take in his relationship with Cuba.<\/span><\/p>\n

Being considered a \u201cstate sponsor of terrorism\u201d has <\/span>consequences<\/span><\/a> that considerably worsen the island\u2019s economic situation. But things don\u2019t end there.<\/span><\/p>\n

After the first two months of his term, everything indicates that this administration will continue to intensify its comprehensive approach to sanctions against Cuba.<\/span><\/p>\n

He will do so by combining decisions that make life difficult for Cubans on the island with domestic policy decisions that could also affect the Cuban community in the United States, including those who fervently desire to tighten the screws on the Havana government.<\/span><\/p>\n

Republican voters of Cuban origin in South Florida cast their ballots equally hopeful that Trump would lower inflation and prices at home, as well as ensure the final collapse of the Cuban government. But they didn\u2019t expect the storm they helped create to blow the roof off their houses.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Trump administration\u2019s motivations for addressing the Cuba issue are not aimed at pleasing his voters. They may even disappoint and challenge them.<\/span><\/p>\n

The sudden cuts in public spending, the discontinuation of programs and agencies such as USAID \u2014 whose funds benefited groups, parties, and media outlets opposed to the Cuban government \u2014 and the paralysis of Radio and TV Mart\u00ed in recent days have made it clear that Cuban issues will not be addressed in Washington in a traditional manner.<\/span><\/p>\n

A ban on entry to the United States for all Cuban citizens is about to be implemented, with no humanitarian or political exceptions, as sources familiar with the matter told the <\/span>Miami Herald<\/span><\/i><\/a> days ago. The administration would shut the doors to all Cubans and definitively end the immigration agreements between the two countries.<\/span><\/p>\n

The <\/span>Miami Herald<\/span><\/i> considered that \u201csuch an extreme version would be difficult for Republican politicians to defend.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Cubans are increasingly being treated like any other minority \u2014 even worse, if the infamous travel ban is confirmed \u2014 and they fear, among other things, the consequences of this administration\u2019s drastic approach to immigration.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:
Photo: EFE\/EPA\/YURI GRIPAS\/POOL.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cGet ready to leave\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

Trump didn\u2019t lie. During his campaign, the then-candidate announced the end of the Humanitarian Parole Program, launched in early 2023 by Biden and benefiting citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Haiti. And yet, he still obtained the votes of those communities. Those who were eligible to vote did so not in favor of the newcomers, but rather in support of the Republican leader\u2019s goal of \u201ccleaning\u201d house.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under the guise of Humanitarian Parole, some <\/span>110,000 Cubans<\/span><\/a> and many others from the rest of the nationalities included in the program were granted entry to the United States. In an interview with <\/span>Fox News<\/span><\/i> in September 2024, Trump warned everyone: \u201cGet ready to leave.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He also said he would revoke the use of the <\/span>CBP One phone app<\/span><\/a>, used by migrants to request appointments to enter the United States. Trump himself is now urging everyone to self-deport using the same app, under the promise that they will later be able to enter the country legally.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Those who were granted \u201cparole\u201d through <\/span>Form I-220A<\/span><\/a>, issued to those detained after illegally crossing the border, would also be deportable.<\/span><\/p>\n

In recent days, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has intensified its detention of Cubans with Form I-220A in Florida. At least three Cubans who showed up for routine supervision appointments <\/span>were detained<\/span><\/a>, and their final fate is still unknown.<\/span><\/p>\n

All of these Cuban groups, whose immigration status is uncertain and numbering around half a million people, feel some degree of concern about the possibility of mass deportations becoming a reality, about which, incidentally, <\/span>so far there has been no dialogue<\/span><\/a> with Havana.<\/span><\/p>\n

Most of those potentially affected remain silent, but a growing number of citizens and small organizations are raising their voices on social media and in some public spaces to demand that only those with criminal records be deported.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A
A security agent guards the Office of Broadcasting to Cuba, operated by Radio and TV Mart\u00ed, in Miami, Florida, USA, on March 17, 2025. Photo: EFE\/EPA\/CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Who represents them?<\/b><\/p>\n

Paradoxically, the more power the community has achieved through its representatives in Washington, the more insecurities loom over it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Neither Secretary of State Marco Rubio nor the three congresspeople also of Cuban origin, Mar\u00eda Elvira Salazar, Mario D\u00edaz-Balart, and Carlos Gim\u00e9nez, have shown firm opposition to this treatment of people who have fled Cuba and been welcomed in recent years by their families settled in the United States.<\/span><\/p>\n

Former congressman and lawyer Joe Garc\u00eda believes that \u201cthe commitment that the Cuban-American elected leaders were supposed to have promised is false. What we have seen is silence from that leadership, or at most, cautious and beseeching criticism.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI imagine all Cuban-American leaders are recalibrating what they are going to do, because they have been shaken. I don\u2019t take away from them the fact that they have a lot of power, but the question is what they are going to do with it. Asking for more torture in Cuba is not a good strategy. It leads nowhere,\u201d Garc\u00eda believes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSo far, they\u2019ve had a shameful reaction, as they\u2019ve continued to support the president despite the fact that he has taken measures against positions they have consistently defended,\u201d comments former Cuban diplomat and political analyst <\/span>Carlos Alzugaray<\/span><\/a>, for whom Cuban-American leaders \u201chave renounced positions they defended in the past to unabashedly embrace the MAGA or Trumpist canon.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

For Ric Herrero, executive director of the <\/span>Cuba Study Group<\/span><\/a>, \u201cCuban-American congressmen in South Florida find themselves between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, the public outcry over Trump\u2019s measures against I-220A, Biden\u2019s parole beneficiaries, and democracy promotion programs is causing considerable unrest in their offices. On the other hand, congressmen seek to appear to be \u2018working with\u2019 and influencing the White House without publicly opposing Trump, who remains more popular among Florida\u2019s Republican base than they are. It\u2019s a difficult balancing act.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A
A traffic light without electricity in Havana. Photo: EFE\/Ernesto Mastrascusa.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bilateral damage<\/b><\/p>\n

According to <\/span>OnCuba<\/b>, sources who requested anonymity have learned that President Trump\u2019s inner circle \u2014 including advisors such as <\/span>Stephen Miller<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>Elon Musk<\/span><\/a> himself \u2014 isn\u2019t very interested in even the opinions of long-serving officials at the State Department when it comes to shaping the rest of his projection toward Cuba. And moderate voices that advocate for a path of normalization of relations with the island have been sidelined.<\/span><\/p>\n

The administration appears unfazed when making unexpected and disruptive decisions. And as in other areas of its foreign policy, in this case it could be preparing to close even the smallest gap that could offer relief to Cubans.<\/span><\/p>\n

But it\u2019s very likely that the impacts of these measures will be felt on both sides.<\/span><\/p>\n

Following the recent migration waves, and especially since the Obama and Biden administrations, the ties created between the island and Cuban-born citizens in the United States have intensified significantly in several respects and are much more dynamic than the always conflictive and meager relations between the two governments.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBiblical proportions\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

In <\/span>statements to\u00a0<\/span>Fox News<\/span><\/i><\/a> in early February, Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the Havana government as a \u201cregime hostile to the United States,\u201d \u201ca disaster that has destroyed the country,\u201d and rejected the possibility of traveling to Havana, \u201cexcept to discuss when the current rulers will leave.\u201d This speech practically positions Cuba as a national security issue.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat you will be facing is of biblical proportions,\u201d <\/span>asserted Carlos Gim\u00e9nez<\/span><\/a>, addressing President D\u00edaz-Canel directly, through a message on X, implying that there is a well-detailed plan for Cuba.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many sanctions already against Cuba that little remains to be done, and what remains could affect Cuban residents or citizens of the United States who make up the government\u2019s support base,\u201d Alzugaray believes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Measures that <\/span>were used<\/span><\/a> during Trump\u2019s previous term could be on the table right now, such as a ban on commercial flights by U.S. airlines except for Havana and restrictions on people-to-people exchange travel for U.S. citizens.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis would be drastic and would seriously affect family ties, citizen diplomacy, religious exchanges, and support for the private sector in Cuba,\u201d says analyst Lee Schlenker, a master\u2019s student in Latin American Studies at Georgetown University and a researcher at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Government.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe cancellation of flights to Cuban provinces outside of Havana, as was the case in 2019, impacts a vital economic source for small and medium-sized Cuban cities that have fewer private businesses and receive fewer tourists than Havana,\u201d Schlenker believes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe practice of U.S. sanctions has evolved significantly since the embargo was imposed in 1962 or codified into law in the 1990s,\u201d Herrero explains. \u201cNow Washington\u2019s focus is on getting the global private sector \u2014 particularly banks and corporations \u2014 to comply with the sanctions because the U.S. government controls much of the financial system in which they operate. So we can expect the new administration to be \u2018creative\u2019 (as they\u2019ve put it) in how they identify and squeeze those choke points.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:
Photo: N\u00e9ster N\u00fa\u00f1ez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

(Further) restricting foreign currency<\/b><\/p>\n

Cuba\u2019s foreign currency deficit, due to the decline in tourism following the COVID-19 pandemic, the decrease in remittances and exports, including medical services, is a critical factor that has worsened the shortages on the island.<\/span><\/p>\n

The roadmap to try to stifle the Cuban government includes, as one of its first points, further restricting access to foreign currency by all means and as much as possible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This has compounded the difficulties in supplying both food \u2014 the island imports more than 80% of what it consumes \u2014 and medicines, medical supplies, and fuel.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cubans have suffered from terrible daily blackouts for almost a year, partly due to the extreme deterioration of the electricity generation and distribution infrastructure, as well as the lack of fuel.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oil-laden ships frequently anchor without being able to deliver their cargo, waiting for weeks for payments that are delayed due to a lack of funds.<\/span><\/p>\n

The long blacklist<\/b><\/p>\n

In the first two weeks of his administration, the State Department reinstated the <\/span>Cuba Restricted List<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Its objective is to prohibit \u201ccertain transactions with companies under the control of, or acting on behalf of or representing, the Cuban armed forces, intelligence services, or security services.\u201d The list includes state-owned companies, hotels, stores, restaurants, among others.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the new update, Orbit, S.A., a Cuban state-owned company in charge of managing remittances sent through Western Union on the island, was added.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:
Photo: N\u00e9ster N\u00fa\u00f1ez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Neither Orbit nor Western Union<\/b><\/p>\n

Between November 2020 and March 2023, remittance transfers to Cuba via this channel were frozen, following the inclusion of Fincimex S.A. on the same list.<\/span><\/p>\n

A few weeks ago, Western Union again suspended its money transfer services to Cuba \u201cdue to a change in U.S. sanctions regulations,\u201d as the company explained in <\/span>a statement<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Without Western Union in the mix, transfers will once again rely more on informal networks, the so-called \u201cmules,\u201d and remittances originating primarily from the United States will once again reach a minimum.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since Western Union is not bank-connected, there are no official figures on the total amount of remittances to Cuba. While some studies <\/span>estimate<\/span><\/a>\u00a0they could reach as much as $4 billion, the Cuban government reported that <\/span>they fell below $1 billion<\/span><\/a> in 2023.<\/span><\/p>\n

Remittances were for years the country\u2019s second or third largest source of foreign currency income, and it is estimated that around 70% of the population receives some amount annually.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cForced labor\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n

Another way to strangle Cuba\u2019s access to foreign currency is by undermining its exports, including those of medical services.<\/span><\/p>\n

Near the end of February, the secretary of state announced the expansion of visa restrictions for \u201ccurrent or former Cuban government officials and other individuals, including foreign government officials\u201d and their families, who are considered \u201cresponsible for or involved in the Cuban labor export program, particularly Cuban medical missions abroad.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The argument is that authorities, both Cuban and those in the beneficiary countries, are complicit in the \u201cforced labor\u201d of professionals, especially healthcare professionals. The <\/span>statement<\/span><\/a> refers to \u201cthe regime\u2019s abusive and coercive labor practices.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The export of medical services has alternated with tourism for about twenty years as one of the main sources of income for the Cuban economy. Currently, some 24,000 Cuban doctors serve in nearly 60 countries.<\/span><\/p>\n

The measure issued by the State Department seeks to inhibit those countries\u2019 interest in maintaining or expanding these types of intergovernmental agreements, in which the Cuban side receives the bulk of the financial revenue and the doctors receive salaries.<\/span><\/p>\n

Frictions with Caricom<\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cI will prefer to lose my U.S. visa than to have 60 poor and working people die,\u201d <\/span>said Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves<\/span><\/a> referring to the dialysis treatments that Cuban doctors provide to patients in his country.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cuban doctors provide essential and sometimes nonexistent healthcare in those countries, in isolated communities lacking basic services.<\/span><\/p>\n

Several <\/span>leaders of Caribbean Community<\/span><\/a> (CARICOM) countries reacted en masse to this U.S. decision. Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, current CARICOM chairwoman, said she was prepared to lose her U.S. visa if \u201ca sensible agreement\u201d on this issue is not reached with Washington, as \u201cprinciples matter.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Among Cubans: families, friends<\/b><\/p>\n

Although a significant drop in remittances is expected from now on, given the difficulties in sending money following the sanctions imposed on Orbit S.A. and the suspension of services by Western Union, Cubans\u2019 willingness to provide assistance to family and friends on the island remains unabated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Far from it, the ways of sending remittances have taken unexpected turns in recent years; either by paying for the migration journeys of hundreds of thousands of relatives to the United States or other countries, or by investing in real estate \u2014 in a declining market \u2014 to do business or to improve the lives of family members left behind on the island. Many Cubans living abroad have provided start-up capital for the creation of private MSMEs run by relatives or friends.<\/span><\/p>\n

Another indirect form of remittance that has helped cope with the crisis is shopping for Cuba on the dozens of online shopping platforms, among the best-known being Supermarket 23, Katapulk, and TuAmbia, which deliver basic necessities to doorsteps throughout the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cuban economist and <\/span>OnCuba<\/b> columnist <\/span>Juan Triana<\/span><\/a> estimates that more than 3,000 orders are placed on these platforms daily, and that around 80% of what is sold are products that the Cuban state no longer guarantees in the basic food basket (practically nonexistent) and is also unable to maintain a stable supply in the markets, either in national currency or in foreign currency: chicken, rice, wheat flour, sausages, pork, powdered milk, eggs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Supplying their loved ones<\/b><\/p>\n

Armando, a 35-year-old Havanan, has been shopping on one of these platforms for nearly five years, on a monthly basis. Between him and his cousin, both residents in Kentucky, they provide food for four family members in Havana each month, all between the ages of 60 and 80. \u201cWe buy them meat, beans, eggs, and toiletries.\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cJust imagine,\u201d is his response to the question about how it would affect his family if this source of food and other basic goods were cut off. He asserts that his relatives in Cuba would have no alternative means, since they are older, unable to run around looking for what they need, and also financially dependent on him and his cousin. \u201cThey don\u2019t do anything with the money.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Paula lives in Portugal and has her 70-year-old mother in Cuba and four elderly aunts. She doesn\u2019t have a large income, but she can send food irregularly depending on her family\u2019s needs. Over the course of about three years, she has bought rice, beans, dairy products, and minced meat for her mother or aunts. When her mother turned 70, she bought a large combo of food and drinks for them to celebrate.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I heard that they might eliminate this option, my family was the first thing that came to mind. The impact would be significant. Not only because of the amount of food they would no longer be guaranteed thanks to the shipment, but because if we find ourselves without this supply, it will spread more hunger among many Cuban families. The shortages will worsen. And we\u2019re talking about food and toiletries, which is what I send. Something very basic.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:
Photo: N\u00e9ster N\u00fa\u00f1ez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rumors and forecasts<\/b><\/p>\n

Many of the online stores that ship to Cuba are operated by Cuban-American companies that have received special licenses in recent years from federal entities such as OFAC or the Department of Commerce to export to the island.<\/span><\/p>\n

In most cases, in Cuba the conciliation, storage, and distribution processes are completed through the activities of private MSMEs. The Cuban government, which has no involvement in the chain, is only paid the corresponding taxes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, rumors are growing that the Trump administration would cancel these export licenses, thus destroying the entire trade network that allows purchases from \u201coutside\u201d to those \u201cinside.\u201d But not only that.<\/span><\/p>\n

It would also significantly cripple supplies for small food production industries, hospitality businesses, and the neighborhood private grocery stores that have multiplied, run by MSMEs, where sales are made in Cuban pesos and where people pay for a large part of their daily supplies.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ric Herrero predicts that \u201cthe measures will extend beyond restricting travel and visas to hinder trade with Cuba, regardless of whether it is with the Cuban state or the private sector. This week\u2019s announcement that the <\/span>U.S. Coast Guard will impose restrictions<\/span><\/a> on vessels coming from Cuba is just one example. Of course, these vessels primarily transport food and household staples, most of which are currently sold by the island\u2019s private sector. And those most affected by travel restrictions to and from Cuba are always Cuban families. So, once again, ordinary Cubans will be the ones bearing the brunt of these \u2018pressure-cooker\u2019 sanctions.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Frozen chicken<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the most in-demand products on these online commerce platforms and in the stores operated by MSMEs across all Cuban towns is frozen chicken, which has become the most consumed animal protein on the island, in the absence of others, and not because it\u2019s cheap.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Due to high prices and the devaluation of the Cuban peso, families who only receive income from state salaries or pensions also cannot afford to buy chicken frequently. Forty percent of Cuban retirees receive <\/span>minimum pensions<\/span><\/a> of around 1,528 pesos, and 10 pounds of chicken currently costs between 3,000 and 3,500 pesos.<\/span><\/p>\n

While social gaps in Cuba are widening, demand increased in 2024, reaching a new record in chicken meat exports from the United States to Cuba, exceeding $313 million annually.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the last four years, according to Cuban economist <\/span>Pedro Monreal<\/span><\/a>, based on data from the Department of Agriculture, the purchase of chicken meat in the United States by various authorized Cuban economic actors \u2014 state entities, cooperatives, and MSMEs \u2014 amounted to $1.18 billion.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Cuban government can make these purchases under the Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000, which authorizes the export of agricultural products to Cuba, provided that payments are made in cash, upfront, and without U.S. financing.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to <\/span>a report by the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council<\/span><\/a>, the island ranks 44th in the U.S. agricultural and food export market out of 203 locations.<\/span><\/p>\n

The United States is one of the island\u2019s main trading partners in terms of imports. Economically, the cancellation of this trade would constitute complete senselessness and would also directly affect U.S. producers and marketers.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:
Photo: N\u00e9ster N\u00fa\u00f1ez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

And the private sector?<\/b><\/p>\n

Trump had just finished his first term when the Cuban government allowed the creation of small private businesses in Cuba in 2021, which now total more than 9,000 registered businesses.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cuba\u2019s non-state sector, which includes self-employed workers and cooperatives, currently accounts for <\/span>35% of<\/span><\/a> the active workforce<\/span><\/a> and creates around 15% of GDP. A relevant fact is that it is responsible for 44% of retail sales in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

From Havana, Oniel D\u00edaz, general manager of AUGE, a private corporate services company, confirms that they are preparing for bad news.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe have analyzed the possible sanctions that the Trump administration could adopt if it decided to follow the approach of a portion of the Cuban-American community in Miami, especially Cuban-American congresspeople who, as is well known, <\/span>defend the false theory<\/span><\/a> that the private sector is a fraud and nothing more than a public relations operation of the Cuban government.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf this were to become the official discourse of the U.S. government regarding the private sector, they could even include some MSMEs they consider on the Cuba Restricted List,\u201d explains D\u00edaz.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSomething that would directly affect the private sector, in addition to the possible abolition of export licenses, would be a travel ban for Americans to Cuba, who continue to be a significant amount of guests for accommodation, transportation, catering, and gastronomy services offered by the private sector.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

For her part, Marta Deus, co-founder and CEO of the delivery company Mandao, believes that by removing all commercial licenses, the U.S. government \u201cwould only isolate Cuba once again, and we have seen for a long time that this is not a solution to what they are theoretically seeking. More isolation, more sanctions, more complications, higher prices.\u2026 In the end, it is always the people who end up being affected.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere are many people in Florida who have businesses associated with Cuba. We know of MSMEs here whose owners live in Miami; many who have agencies there, shipping to Cuba; in other words, their businesses thrive thanks to the existence of Cuba and people living here. We understand that it\u2019s a large community, but with so much social pressure surrounding them, they don\u2019t raise their voices much either. They are there, they benefit from these trade opportunities with Cuba, but when it comes to speaking out to save Cuba, they don\u2019t say anything either,\u201d Deus concludes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maximum pressure, but for what?<\/b><\/p>\n

The multidimensional crisis Cuba is experiencing presents itself as the momentum to forcefully put pressure. By intensifying the daily precariousness that extends to all social sectors and throughout Cuba they seek to achieve a popular uprising \u2014 greater than that of July 11, 2021, which left almost <\/span>300 prisoners<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>disproportionate sentences<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Every day, many on both sides of the Strait hope for another outbreak, and that, it seems, is also the big bet from the \u201chardliners\u201d in Washington. But to what end?<\/span><\/p>\n

Would an administration that seeks to annex Canada and buy Greenland, that changes the name of the Gulf of Mexico, that announces the reconstruction of Gaza in resort style, subject to the expulsion of the Gazans, be content with a change of leadership in Cuba, or with the legalization of political parties and the holding of elections?<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo:
Photo: N\u00e9ster N\u00fa\u00f1ez.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What do we Cubans want?<\/b><\/p>\n

Former Congressman Joe Garc\u00eda asks what we Cubans on both sides want: \u201cWe\u2019ve been hearing for more than 60 years that the regime is on the brink of collapse, and people living in Cuba know that\u2019s not the case; that the government is a disaster, but it\u2019s not on the brink of collapse. They have power, they hold it, and since they\u2019re dedicated to one thing \u2014 resisting \u2014 they will resist. But the question is, is that what the people of Cuba want? Both those inside and those outside?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s worth asking whether counterweights can exist, whether moderate positions will achieve anything in a context marked by political extremism.<\/span><\/p>\n

Oniel D\u00edaz believes that, deep down, \u201cCubans love their families, they love their homeland, they love their soil, and that, ultimately, extreme measures that would lead us to a position of no return, of serious economic, political, and social deterioration, will not be applauded by the majority.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

With a less optimistic outlook, Guillermo Grenier, professor of sociology and principal investigator of the Cuba Poll \u2014 a survey designed to measure the political views of Cubans in South Florida \u2014 believes that \u201cthe moderate sector has no chance. Moderates can only function when there is at least a small opening.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere are still companies in Miami that do business with MSMEs; but you\u2019ll see that they, too, are backing down. I don\u2019t see anyone lobbying for engagement with Cuba. There\u2019s a lot of fear in Miami,\u201d Grenier concludes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cNobody knows what\u2019s going to happen, and they\u2019re waiting for the worst. Congress members are Republicans first and Latinos\/Hispanics\/Cubans second. Until the courts or other governments pull their weight, Cuban congress members aren\u2019t going to risk going against Trump,\u201d he concludes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ric Herrero believes that \u201cthe main challenge facing moderates who favor better relations with Cuba is that they currently lack influence. Trump doesn\u2019t need them, so his political team isn\u2019t interested in hearing their perspectives.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, Herrero adds, \u201cthe Cuban government may not be a threat to the United States, but it does nothing to present Cuba as an opportunity for Americans. Without positive advances within the island to highlight, moderates are limited to helping individual Cubans, drawing attention to the humanitarian crisis, and continuing to advocate for an uncertain return to common-sense policies that can pull Cuba back from the abyss.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In just two months, the administration has filled the headlines. It\u2019s very likely that new decisions are coming that will harm Cubans, and not just those on the island.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3685,"featured_media":320013,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13944],"tags":[34617,34845,14973,19256],"ppma_author":[33674],"class_list":["post-320011","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cuba-usa","tag-cuban-and-united-states","tag-cubanoamericanos","tag-donald-trump-administration","tag-featured"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nTrump and the firm hand with Cuba: who pays the highest price | OnCubaNews English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It\u2019s very likely that new decisions are coming that will harm Cubans, and not just those on the island. 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