On December 12, 2024, the U.S. State Department released its 2023 Country Reports on Terrorism.[1] its introduction stated the following:
- “The Department of State has issued the 2023 Country Reports on Terrorism (CRT), which provide a detailed look at how the counterterrorism environment and associated threats have evolved over the past year, fulfilling an important Congressional mandate. Each year, the CRT provides insight on important issues in the fight against terrorism and helps the United States make informed decisions about policies, programs, and resource allocations as we seek to build counterterrorism capacity and resilience around the globe.”
- “Amid a constantly changing threat landscape, the CRT provides an overview of how we marshal international efforts to counter terrorism. Among the many accomplishments highlighted in the 2023 report are our efforts to refine the focus of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS to address new regions of concern; the continued designation of racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist groups and their leaders; and the repatriation of more than 5,500 foreign terrorist fighters from detention facilities and associated family members from displaced persons camps in northeast Syria.”
- “As the United States adapts its counterterrorism approach to keep pace with evolving threats, the CRT continues to serve as a valuable resource in assessing the global terrorism landscape.”
The Report also stated, “To designate a country as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, the Secretary of State must determine that the government of such country has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism. Once a country is designated, it remains a State Sponsor of Terrorism until the designation is rescinded in accordance with statutory criteria requiring the President to certify either a) that a designated country has not provided any support for acts of international terrorism during the previous six months and has provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future or b) that there has been a fundamental change in the leadership and policies of the designated country, that the country is not supporting acts of international terrorism, and that the country has provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future.” (Emphasis added.)
That report stated the following regarding Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism::
- “On January 12, 2021, the Department of State designated Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terrorism. The Secretary of State determined that the Cuban government repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism in granting safe harbor to terrorists.“
- “Cuba was previously designated as a State Sponsor of Terrorism in 1982 because of its long history of providing advice, safe haven, communications, training, and financial support to guerrilla groups and individual terrorists.”
- “Cuba’s designation was rescinded in 2015 after a thorough review found the country met the statutory criteria for rescission. In 2021 the Secretary of State determined Cuba had repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism in the six years since its designation had been rescinded. Citing peace negotiation protocols, Cuba refused Colombia’s request to extradite 10 Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN, or the National Liberation Army) leaders living in Havana after that group claimed responsibility for the 2019 bombing of a Bogotá police academy that killed 22 people and injured 87 others.”
- “The Cuban government did not formally respond to the extradition requests for ELN leaders Victor Orlando Cubides (aka “Pablo Tejada”) and Ramírez Pineda (aka “Pablo Beltrán”) filed by Colombia.”
- “In November 2022, pursuant to an order from Colombian President Petro, the U.S. Attorney General announced that arrest warrants would be suspended against 17 ELN commanders, including those whose extradition Colombia had previously requested. In May 2023 the Colombian government and ELN convened the third round of Colombia-ELN peace talks in Cuba.”
- “Cuba continues to harbor several U.S. fugitives from justice wanted on charges related to political violence, many of whom have resided in Cuba for decades.”
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[1] U.S. State Department, On the release of the 2023 Country Reports on Terrorism (Dec. 12, 2024). See also The Cuban regime will remain on the US list of state sponsors of terrorism for another year, Diario de Cuba (Dec. 12, 2024).
