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Cuban Recognition (Slightly Important Articles (Cuba after communism Julia…

- - - - Q: I have a—so I was in the Army. Then when I got out I had a topsecret
        clearance. So I currently have that
        still. And so the question is, if I travel to Cuba will that affect the clearance? And if someone who has—
        doesn’t have a clearance and is applying to have a clearance, and they travel to Cuba, would that affect them
        receiving a clearance?
        
        PURCELL: See, I’m reluctant to answer the question because it’s pretty specific in terms of—how can I put it?
        In theory, you should have—in theory—(laughs)—you should have the right to just, you know, tell the U.S.
        government you fit into this group or that group. And then you can go and supposedly they don’t check it.
        But in your case, it seems to me—and I’m just talking from—it’s a gut feeling I have, but I’m not basing it on
        anything I know for sure—since you have, you know, a high level of clearance and you’re former military, I
        would—I would check it through the U.S. Treasury Department. :check:
- - - - "Shortly after we concluded our work, the Clinton administration
        announced a series of measures that, though more limited in scope
        than those we had urged, were consistent with the spirit of our
        recommendations and, in the case of people-to-people exchanges,
        adopted certain of the Task Force’s recommendations. In making
        these announcements, the White House noted that a number
        of additional measures contained in our report would remain
        under active consideration for future implementation." :check:
        
        "The most significant of the administration’s January 1999
        steps were designed to allow greater people-to-people contact.
        These changes included substantially expanding legal, licensed
        travel for Americans wishing to visit the island, streamlining the
        temporary visa process for Cuban professionals who wish to
        visit this country, and allowing charter flights to Cuba to depart
        from Los Angeles and New York as well as Miami, to Havana
        and other cities in Cuba.Other measures proposed by the Clinton
        administration would begin direct mail service between the
        two countries as authorized by the 1992 Cuban Democracy Act...In light of a broader congressional debate over sanctions policy,
        particularly regarding food and medicine trade bans, the
        Clinton administration indicated it would streamline the licensing
        of medical sales to Cuba and license the sale of food and agricultural
        inputs to nongovernmental entities on the island.
        In addition, the administration proposed to Cuba a series of
        steps designed to enhance counternarcotics cooperation. Direct
        bilateral talks in 1999 resulted in the stationing of a U.S. Coast
        Guard official in March 2000 at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana,
        as a liaison to search vessels for contraband. The two countries
        also upgraded their communications regarding counternarcotics
        from fax to phone" :check:
        
        "Issue a General License for Travel by All Americans. Following
        the Clinton administration’s January 1999 measures, new
        travel regulations have effectively expanded licensing for
        American travel to Cuba—to nearly 200,000 for 1999, by
        most estimates.Trusting in the power of freedom and democracy,
        and in view of the success of people-to-people contacts,
        we recommend that the president issue a general license to all
        Americans wishing to travel to Cuba. Americans traveling freely,
        without government licensing or program restrictions, will support
        the expansion of free-market activity in Cuba and will build
        links with Cuban society that no government program would
        envision. If the Cuban government blocks Americans from visiting
        the island, it alone will be held responsible for isolating
        the Cuban population. American citizens personify American
        ideas and values.We note that despite the recent codification
        of travel regulations, the House of Representatives voted
        recently to lift the travel ban indirectly by withholding the funds
        needed to enforce current restrictions.Whether through a change
        in law by Congress, which would be preferable, or through the
        existing licensing authority of the executive branch, all Americans
        should now be able to travel freely to Cuba. The effect
        of a general license for all American travel will be to eliminate
        the current requirement of prior approval from OFAC; it will
        thereby end the ban on travel to Cuba by Americans excluded
        by current regulations." Page 20-21 :check:
        
        Facilitate Resolution of Expropriation Claims. President
        Eisenhower banned U.S. trade with Cuba forty years ago, in
        October of 1960, in response to Cuba’s nationalization-without-
        compensation of properties and businesses then owned by
        Americans on the island. Cuba had taken over agricultural lands
        U.S.-Cuban Relations in the 21st Century
        and sugar mills soon after the 1959 revolution; in 1960 it seized
        the U.S.-controlled nickel mines, the telephone company,
        petroleum refineries, electrical generation and distribution
        facilities, cement and tire plants, supermarkets, and banks. no need to cite much of this. it is standard historical knowledge :red_cross:
        
        "We strongly support the Task Force’s recommendations but
        believe that its objectives can be best achieved by addressing the
        central issue of U.S.-Cuban relations: the embargo.
        The current U.S. embargo obstructs humanitarian aid and obscures
        the failure of the Cuban government’s economic policies, which
        is the central cause of the very significant human suffering in Cuba
        today. The new president has an historic opportunity to work with
        a new Congress to lift the embargo, specifically all restrictions
        on trade and travel, and he should be encouraged to do so.
        We agree with the report’s conclusion, however, that the ban
        on American investment should be treated differently. It should
        only be lifted as the Cuban government allows Cuban citizens
        to participate in the Cuban economy through direct employment,
        business ownership, and other economic rights." this came from a dissenting opinion. that means that they didn't think the original task force went far enough. :check: