Cuba Certified as a “Not Fully Cooperating Country” by United States
ProCon Debate: Should the United States Maintain Its Embargo Against Cuba?
ProCon Issue in the News: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio certified Cuba as a “not fully cooperating country” on May 13, 2025. The designation means that the U.S. Department of State has determined that Cuba “did not fully cooperate with U.S. counterterrorism efforts in 2024” and that the “certification results in a prohibition on the sale or license for export of defense articles and services to Cuba.”
The certification states the reasons for the designation:
There were at least 11 U.S. fugitives from justice in Cuba, including several facing terrorism-related charges, and the Cuban regime made clear it was not willing to discuss their return to face justice in our nation. The Cuban regime’s refusal to engage on this important issue, as well as other recent circumstances of non-cooperation on terrorism-related law enforcement matters, made efforts to cooperate on counterterrorism issues futile in 2024.
The fugitives are not listed in the certification, but they are presumed to include William Morales, who was convicted for a 1975 bombing of a Manhattan tavern that killed four people, and Joanne Chesimard (also known as Assata Shakur), who was convicted of murdering a New Jersey state trooper in 1973. Both escaped prison in the United States and were offered refuge by then Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Rubio also designated Iran, North Korea, Syria, and Venezuela as not fully cooperating countries.
The certification follows the decision by U.S. Pres. Donald Trump to redesignate Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism. According to the State Department, a state sponsor of terrorism is a country that has “repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.” Recently, the designation for Cuba has changed with each U.S. presidential administration. Pres. Barack Obama removed Cuba from the list in 2015 in exchange for the release of political prisoners, a move that Rubio, as a Republican U.S. senator representing Florida, publicly condemned:
This is going to do absolutely nothing to further human rights and democracy in Cuba. But it potentially goes a long way in providing the economic lift that the Castro regime needs to become permanent fixtures in Cuba for generations to come.
Trump returned Cuba to the list of state sponsors of terrorism in 2021, and Pres. Joe Biden removed Cuba from the list on January 14, 2025, just days before Trump, at the start of his second term as president, returned Cuba to the list, on January 20.
Additionally, on March 19, 2025, the U.S. Coast Guard announced that conditions of entry will be imposed on boats arriving from Cuba, as well as 21 other countries “that the Coast Guard has not found to maintain effective anti-terrorism measures”: Cambodia, Cameroon, Comoros, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Madagascar, Micronesia, Nauru, Nigeria, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Sudan, Syria, East Timor, Venezuela, and Yemen.
Discussion Questions
- Read the ProCon debate about Cuba. Should the United States maintain the embargo against Cuba? Why or why not?
- If the U.S. should not maintain the embargo, what steps should be taken to end the embargo? Explain your answer.
- If the U.S. should maintain the embargo, what steps should be taken to strengthen the embargo? Explain your answer.
Sources
- Tammy Bruce, “Certification of Cuba as a Not Fully Cooperating Country” (May 13, 2025), state.gov
- Nora Gámez Torres, “Rubio Says Cuba Failed to Cooperate with U.S. on Counter-Terrorism Efforts Last Year” (May 13, 2025), miamiherald.com
- Diane Hernández, “Rubio States That Cuba Did Not Cooperate with the US in the Fight Against Terrorism Last Year” (May 14, 2025), voz.us
- Brendan O’Brien and Dave Sherwood, “US Says Cuba ‘Not Fully Cooperating’ with Counter-Terrorism Efforts” (May 13, 2025), reuters.com
- U.S. Department of State, “State Sponsors of Terrorism” (accessed May 15, 2025), state.gov