Trump Reaffirms “Maximum Pressure” Cuba Policy

Donald Trump issued a National Security Presidential Memorandum (NSPM) Monday repeating his June 2017 Cuba policy directives, which launched his “maximum pressure” policy toward the island during his first term.

At the time, the memorandum reversed Barack Obama’s policy of engagement with Cuba, and was the starting point for dozens of subsequent measures designed to wreak havoc on Cuba’s economy.

Joe Biden kept the majority of those Trump sanctions in place until his last days in office. He finally revoked the memorandum on January 14, but on Trump’s first day in office he revoked Biden’s revocation.

Thus, Trump’s June 2017 memo has effectively been in place for the last eight years with the exception of the last six days of Biden’s presidency.

The new memo carries the same name as the one published in 2017 (NSPM-5) and its language is almost identical with one notable exception.

The 2017 memo ordered the secretary of state to identify and publish a list of Cuban state entities with which direct financial transactions would be off-limits to U.S. nationals, companies and other entities. The new memo calls for a list of Cuban state entities with which direct and indirect financial transactions would be prohibited.

It is not clear if the list would be expanded nor is it clear what implications the addition of “indirect” transactions would mean.

Like the old memo, this one states it will be the policy of the U.S. to “support the economic embargo of Cuba,” deprive the Cuban government of funds, enforce a ban on U.S. tourism to Cuba and sanction specific government entities.

The document itself does not necessarily mean new sanctions on Cuba. But like the Cuba memo in Trump’s first term, it seems likely to pave the way to harsher measures in the weeks and months to come.

The Miami Herald has reported that the new memo will open the door to new “secondary sanctions” targeting foreign companies that do business in Cuba, citing “a source with knowledge of the new regulations.”

However, the new memo does not explicitly target foreign companies nor is it clear how it would allow for secondary sanctions. 

Regardless of the new memo, Trump could pass an executive order sanctioning companies from third countries. Former U.S. Special Envoy for Latin America Mauricio Claver-Carone, until recently Rubio’s right-hand man on Cuba policy, had indicated earlier this year that “modernized sanctions” aimed at third parties were in the pipeline.

Sanctions on foreign companies doing business in Cuba would be another blow to the island's already foundering economy. They could also potentially create diplomatic problems for the U.S., since several of Cuba’s main economic partners are U.S. allies.

With Cuban-American hardliner Marco Rubio running U.S. foreign policy, the continuation and intensification of the U.S. government’s “maximum pressure” strategy comes as no surprise.

Rubio was a driving force behind the Cold War-era approach toward Cuba during Trump’s first term and less than two weeks after becoming secretary of state he confirmed the administration would embrace “a tough U.S.-Cuba policy.”

In recent months Rubio has been targeting the island’s sources of foreign revenue, including a campaign to pressure other countries into cutting ties with Cuba’s medical missions.