US removes Cuba from list of State Sponsor of Terrorism

United States (US) in a landmark decision has removed Cuba from its list of State Sponsor of Terrorism. In this regard US secretary of state John Kerry has signed an order removing Cuba from the terrorism blacklist.
This decision will pave the way for normalizing and strengthening ties between both countries which were frozen for half a century after the Cuban missile crisis in 1962.
United States decision for rescission of Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism comes after an assessment which indicates that Cuba meets the statutory criteria for rescission. This move eliminates a major obstacle toward restoring diplomatic ties after 54 years of between both nations and allows Cuba to conduct banking in US along with among other activities.
Background

• In December 2014, after both countries had agreed to re-establish diplomatic ties. Later in same month US President Barack Obama had instructed the Secretary of State to immediately launch a review of Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.
• He was asked to provide a report regarding Cuba’s support for international terrorism within six months.
• In April 2015, Kerry completed that review and recommended to the President that Cuba no longer be designated as a State Sponsor of Terrorism.

Month: Current Affairs - May, 2015