The measure prevents vessels registered in the United States from entering Cuba.
US President Joe Biden extended this Wednesday until 2022 the declaration of emergency with Cuba, which has been in force since 1996 after the downing of the two civilian planes of the Cuban exile organization “Brothers to the Rescue”.
According to a cable from the EFE agency, Biden sent a proclamation to Congress in which he assured that “the need continues to continue with this national emergency.”
Said measure prevents “the unauthorized entry of any vessel registered in the United States in Cuban territorial waters.”
25 years ago, on February 24, 1996, Cuban MiG fighters belonging to the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR) shot down three planes belonging to the exile group “Brothers to the Rescue”, dedicated to spotting rafters fleeing the island.
In the action, the Cuban MiGs shot down two of the Cessnas Skymaster of the Cuban exile organization and killed four of its crew members, prompting the declaration of emergency by the Government of then President Bill Clinton.
According to the version offered by the Cuban authorities, the planes had violated their airspace to disseminate propaganda material against the regime, although the US government maintained that they were in international airspace, in the north of the island.
The emergency declaration has been active since March 1, 1996, when it was issued by President Bill Clinton.
During the period of thaw applied in the Barack Obama administration, the regulations were relaxed, although maintained, despite having re-established relations with Havana in 2014.
“The possibility of large-scale unauthorized entry of US-registered vessels into Cuban territorial waters would disrupt the United States’ international relations with Cuba by allowing or providing the means to facilitate a mass migration of Cuban citizens and threatening our security. national, “Biden said in his statement.