News: U.S. May Abstain from Vote Condemning Cuban Embargo

According to a recent report, the Obama administration may exclude the U.S. from an annual United Nations vote that condemns America’s 54-year-old embargo on Cuba. The vote is expected to take place next month.

The move comes amid thawing diplomatic relations between Washington and Havana, as well as Pope Francis’ visit to the communist island nation (Francis “worked behind the scenes to broker the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between the two nations,” according to the Associated Press).

“U.S. officials tell the AP that the Obama administration is weighing abstaining from the annual U.N. General Assembly vote on a Cuban-backed resolution demanding that the embargo be lifted. The vote could come next month. No decision has yet been made, said four administration officials who weren’t authorized to speak publicly on sensitive internal deliberations and demanded anonymity. But merely considering an abstention is unprecedented. Following through on the idea would send shock waves through both the United Nations and Congress. It is unheard of for a U.N. member state not to oppose resolutions critical of its own laws. By not actively opposing the resolution, the administration would be effectively siding with the world body against Congress, which has refused to repeal the embargo despite calls from President Barack Obama to do so,” reports the Associated Press.

In early July the U.S. and Cuba moved to formally restore diplomatic relations, including the re-establishment of embassies in Washington and Havana. By then President Obama had already issued an executive order making legal travel to Cuba a little easier—and had already removed Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism—which represented the biggest changes in a generation with respect to U.S.-Cuban relations. Obama has also called on Congress to end the trade embargo.

Under new rules, legal visitors to Cuba are allowed to bring up to $100 worth of Cuban cigars back to the U.S.; an outright end to the embargo, however, would unquestionably herald drastic, long-lasting changes for the cigar industry, as well as present new challenges and opportunities.

You can read more StogieGuys.com analysis of everything that’s new with Cuba here and here. And, as always, we’ll keep you posted with new developments as they arise.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Flickr