State Department Designates Cuba as State Sponsor of Terrorism

The State Department designated Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism, the agency said Jan. 11. Cuba's designation, which was lifted in 2015 by the Obama administration, will reimpose export restrictions on shipments of certain arms and dual-use items to the island, along with other trade prohibitions and restrictions. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Cuba has “broken” its commitment to stop supporting terrorism as a condition of the 2015 designation removal. The move was met with criticism from at least one Senate Democrat, with Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who called it a “blatantly politicized designation.” Leahy added that “domestic terrorism in the United States poses a far greater threat to Americans than Cuba does.”