White House announces new travel and trade restrictions on Cuba


American citizens looking to travel to Cuba may rethink their vacation choice, thanks to a list of travel restrictions and sanctions announced Wednesday by the Trump administration. The blacklist will go into effect Thursday.
New restrictions mean that American tourists will need to primarily book a trip with organized tour groups in order to visit the country. U.S. government officials told The Associated Press that the restrictions aim to decrease American trade and commerce with businesses backed by the Cuban military. The list features 180 entities, including 83 hotels and 10 Havana boutiques.
"We have strengthened our Cuba policies to channel economic activity away from the Cuban military and to encourage the government to move toward greater political and economic freedom for the Cuban people," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement Wednesday.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The new restrictions represent a partial rollback of Obama-era policy changes, which loosened restrictions on trade and travel between the U.S. and Cuba. Although the new blacklist is designed to impact the Cuban military, the Trump administration has not commented on whether the restrictions are related to the "health attacks" that U.S. government officials experienced in the Havana embassy. Embassies in Havana and Washington will remain open, The Associated Press reported.
Read the full list of restrictions from the U.S. Department of State.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Elianna Spitzer is a rising junior at Brandeis University, majoring in Politics and American Studies. She is also a news editor and writer at The Brandeis Hoot. When she is not covering campus news, Elianna can be found arguing legal cases with her mock trial team.q
-
The knives come out for Pam Bondi
IN THE SPOTLIGHT She wasn't Trump's first pick to lead the Justice Department. After months of scandals and setbacks, is the attorney general's MAGA shelf life winding down?
-
What to expect for student loan repayment under Trump's budget bill
The Explainer Millions of borrowers may soon be forced to alter their plans
-
The world's 10 richest families
In Depth From Middle Eastern monarchs to M&M magnates, these are the most fabulously wealthy clans on Earth
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement