Obama may ease travel restrictions to Cuba

Obama may relax some restrictions on travel to Cuba by Americans

An unnamed U.S. official disclosed that President Barack Obama may relax some restrictions on travel to Cuba by Americans, to allow some cultural or educational trips there, but declined to comment about the specifics.

The president already eased some travel restrictions on Cuban travel last year to “promote the freer flow of information” by allowing Cuban-Americans to visit and send money to their homeland.

The rules being enforced today allows students or university workers to travel to Cuba, provided they meet certain criteria such as research work, and must be approved by the Office of Foreign Assets Control under the Treasury Department.

The loosened travel ban is aimed to isolate the Fidel Castro regime and prevent hard currency form entering the country.

When asked to confirm the further easing of travel restrictions, Michael Hammer, spokesman of the White House National Security Council, said, “We will continue to pursue policies that advance the U.S. national interest and support the Cuban people’s desire to freely determine their country’s future.”

An order to allow any increase of education-related travel to Cuba may prod lawmakers to repeal the general travel ban of Americans to Cuba if President Obama shows some support for the bill, says Ted Piccone, of the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based policy research firm. Supporters of the bill say that they are hopeful that the 47-year ban may be lifted by the measure later this year.

“The Democrats need cover from the White House,” Piccone said yesterday. “If they can’t do it now they’re never going to do it.”

Lawmakers may not be so keen to pass the measure if the president will not show support for it.

Posted by Sophia Andrews on Sunday August 08 2010, 12:38 PM EDT. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Travel. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0