The US evaluates whether Cuba should remain on the list of sponsors of terrorism

The Secretary of StateAntony J. Blinken He said that the United States government is evaluating whether Cuba should continue on the list of countries that sponsor terrorism.

"When it comes toCuba and the designation of sponsor of terrorism, we have clear laws, criteria and requirements. "We will continue to review them as necessary to see if Cuba continues to merit that designation," Blinken said inPress conference, this Monday, together with the Colombian presidentGustavo Petro.

In relation to this issue, the Secretary of State celebrated the "commitment that has been madeColombia for several years to welcome so many Venezuelans who have had toflee from the humanitarian catastrophe which is Venezuela."

He noted that they are "a model not only for the region but for the world." Furthermore, I emphasize that the United States hopes that the regime ofNicolas Maduro and theUnitary Platform can engage in a dialogue that leads to the necessary conditions to have free elections that allow democracy to be restored in Venezuela.

Petro, for his part, commented thatwhat happened with Cuba "is an injustice" and said that the Cuban State was included in the list of sponsors of terrorism due to the request of a Colombian government to the administration ofDonald Trump, during the period when the island was the headquarters of negotiations with the ELN and FARC.

"We are not the ones who should correct it, but it must be corrected. We have recovered the role of guarantor countries, the processes that will begin shortly, and we have asked the Kingdom of Norway, Cuba, Venezuela, and that same status has been requested by Spain and other countries. And when we decide the place, the place where the negotiations will take place, we will discuss this issue again," Petro added.

At the beginning of 2021, when Joe Biden just began his presidential term, the United States government also said thatreviewed the situation in Cuba regarding its inclusion on the list of countries sponsoring terrorism.

At that time Blinken said that all themeasures taken by the government of Donald Trump, because "there were a number of actions that the outgoing administration took, including that one, that were steps that could have been taken presumably during the four years in office."

Cuba was removed from the terrorism blacklist in 2015, by order of the then president of the United States,Barack Obama, as part of the thaw policy between Washington and Havana. But in January 2021, Donald Trump's administration returned it to the list, along with North Korea, Iran and Syria.

This Monday the rulerMiguel Diaz-Canel reported that thedelegation of the National Liberation Army (ELN) of Colombia withdrew from Cuba.

"With the departure of the ELN Peace delegation from Cuba, the protocol established between the Colombian Government, the ELN and the Guarantor Countries is finally fulfilled. A step forward for the peace talks process in Colombia, with which Cuba reaffirms its willingness to contribute," said the Cuban president on Twitter.

The Cuban Foreign MinisterBruno Rodriguez Grill, who has been in the United States for weeks, also confirmed that the ELN withdrew from Cuban territory on October 2 and noted that the departure occurs in compliance with the protocols signed between the Republic of Colombia, the ELN and the Guarantor Countries. .