Alliance for Cuba Engagement and Respect (ACERE)

ACERE commends the Biden administration for its decision to remove Cuba from the @StateDept's list of state sponsors of terrorism, as well to de-activate Title III of the Helms-Burton Act and eliminate the State Department’s Cuba restricted entities lists acere.org/biden-ssot-rem…

"Go to a Western diplomatic reception in Havana and the chit chat is all about debt, democracy & human rights. Go to a diplomatic reception hosted by a developing country and the conversation trends toward South-South cooperation, healthcare & education." thenation.com/article/world/…

"Given @MarioDB's prominent role in the making of the government’s budget—as Vice Chair of @HouseAppropsGOP and Chair of its Subcommittee on National Security, @StateDept & Related Programs—it's likely Congress will continue to fund at least some Cuba-related democracy programs."

“@united has notified @USDOT that it plans to suspend its sole nonstop scheduled service to Cuba (from Houston) in September amid seasonal fluctuations & tighter restrictions on travel…the airline is the only carrier serving #Cuba from outside Florida.” aviationweek.com/air-transport/…

Happening shortly! "Getting to a Pragmatic Cuba Policy for the United States" Featuring @WMLeoGrande, Geoff Thale, Joy Gordon and @globalsarang Tuesday July 22 from 2-3 PM ET Register: quincyinst.org/events/getting…

“@AllianceForCuba noted that although U.S. tourism is generally prohibited, there are still roughly a dozen legal options for travel to the island, including humanitarian projects, athletic tournaments and education activities.” @CSantucciPhoto for @NY1 spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/buffalo/in…

#Cuba has eliminated from its constitution a requirement for the president to be less than 60 years old, which had been propelled by former President Raul Castro at the end of the last decade, per @ARodriguezAP.

NEW: Despite the Trump admin's drastic cuts to public broadcasting and foreign assistance, @HouseAppropsGOP Subcommittee Chair @MarioDB is requesting $40 MILLION for Miami-based @martinoticias & $35 MILLION for #Cuba "democracy promotion" programs in FY26. appropriations.house.gov/news/press-rel…

NEW: Cuba’s labor minister has resigned after facing sharp criticism from top officials over comments she made Monday that in #Cuba there are no beggars, which Cuba’s president said indeed exist as a result of social inequalities and accumulated problems. reuters.com/world/americas…

The U.S. has placed sanctions + visa restrictions on Cuba’s president, defense & interior ministers, their family members & other judicial officials four years after the July 11 protests. It has also prohibited U.S. citizens’ access to 11 new Cuban hotels. washingtonpost.com/world/2025/07/…

"If the aggressive escalation of sanctions against #Cuba proposed by some Trump advisors & Cuban Americans in Congress were to succeed at collapsing the Cuban regime, then chaos is what they’d get, with dire consequences for a wide range of US interests." foreignpolicy.com/2025/07/10/tru…

Pragmatic US engagement with #Cuba can help relieve migratory pressure, boost the island’s private sector, curb the influence of China & Russia, counter narcotics trafficking and stimulate improvements on human rights, @WMLeoGrande argues in @RStatecraft. responsiblestatecraft.org/trump-sanction…

The Trump administration can pursue a pragmatic #Cuba policy that not only advances U.S. and regional interests but improves the quality of life for the Cuban people. Learn how on Tuesday July 22nd at 2pm ET during this @QuincyInst briefing ⬇️quincyinst.org/events/getting…

Mexico’s state-owned oil company is throwing Cuba a much-needed lifeline as the Caribbean island struggles to keep its power grid operational bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

“Cuban officials say Chinese firms will have built 55 solar farms across the country by the end of this year, with another 37 to be finished by 2028…The government is trying to encourage private use of solar, too, recently announcing that the panels…could be imported duty-free”

Brazilian-Portuguese table tennis world champion Hugo Calderon was denied entry to the US for a major tournament because of his travel to #Cuba in 2023 to participate in another tournament, which inhabilitated his ESTA visa waiver, U.S. officials told him. amp.scmp.com/sport/china/ar…

Cuba & Spain agreed to a debt conversion plan at the International Financing for Development Conference in Sevilla that will turn $375 million of Cuba’s $2 billion debt with Spain into development financing for clean energy, water & food security projects. oncubanews.com/cuba/economia/…

A new eight-part @ForeignPolicy podcast, “I Spy: The US, Cuba, and the Secret Deal That Ended the Cold War,” describes how secret negotiations to free two men brought an end to half a century of hostilities between the US & Cuba—until it didn’t. @danephron audible.com/es_US/pd/I-Spy…

The @USTreasury fined a US logistics firm $600k because its Colombian subsidiary organized from Jan ’22-Jul ’23 33 shipments to #Cuba of food “not eligible to be licensed by OFAC” for $3 million, undermining the “objectives” of its Cuba sanctions program. ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions…

Rosa María Payá has joined the Organization of American States’ human rights commission, despite backing US sanctions on Cuba, cozying up to far-right leaders, and lacking basic knowledge of international law, Reed Lindsay of @bellybeastcuba reports. jacobin.com/2025/07/oas-cu…

Secondary sanctions on foreign firms operating in #Cuba could prompt renewed migration to the U.S., inadvertently cede more ground to China, worsen conditions for ordinary Cubans, and fail to usher in political liberalization on the island, @WillGFreeman writes for @CFR_org.