WASHINGTON
— Cuba has agreed to work on resolving the cases of U.S. fugitives
harboring from justice on the island as part of the effort to normalize
relations between the two nations, President Barack Obama told lawmakers
as he made the case for removing the former Cold War foe from the list
of state sponsors of terrorism.
In
a message to Congress dated Wednesday, Obama acknowledged that Cuba has
gone so far as to provide housing, food ration books and medical care
to some of the fugitives wanted to stand trial or serve sentences on
serious charges in the United States. However, he argued that Havana has
been more cooperative with the United States in some recent cases,
returning two fugitives in 2011 and two more in 2013.
"Cuba
has agreed to enter into a law enforcement dialogue with the United
States that will include discussions with the aim of resolving
outstanding fugitive cases," Obama wrote. "We believe that the strong
U.S. interest in the return of these fugitives will be best served by
entering into this dialogue with Cuba."
Obama's
move to remove Cuba from the terror list has been met with some
opposition over the fugitives. New Jersey's Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez
and Republican Gov. Chris Christie have both maintained that the terror
designation should remain, especially while refusing to extradite
Joanne Chesimard. Chesimard, a member of the Black Panther Party and
Black Liberation Army, has lived in Cuba since fleeing her 1977
conviction for killing a New Jersey state trooper.
"It
is a national disgrace that this president would even consider
normalizing relations while they are harboring a terrorist murderer who
belongs in prison in New Jersey," Christie, a likely 2016 presidential
candidate, said at a town hall meeting Wednesday in New Hampshire.
Obama's
message to Congress provides a more detailed argument after he
announced Tuesday that he will remove Cuba from the list after the
required 45 days have passed after notification. Lawmakers could vote to
block the move during that window of time, though Obama would be all
but certain to veto such a measure.
Cuba
was designated a state sponsor of terror in 1982 because of what the
White House said was its support of armed revolution in Latin America by
organizations that used terror. But Obama says there's no evidence
Havana has supported terrorism in the past six months and the Cuban
government has assured the U.S. that it won't support terrorism in the
future.
In
Wednesday's message to Congress, Obama cites Cuba's condemnation of
terrorism in recent years, including rejection of global attacks
including Paris and Boston, among the arguments for removing it from the
list. Obama also noted that after the terror attacks on the United
States on Sept. 11, 2001, Cuba expressed solidarity with the U.S. and
offered airspace and airports to American planes. He cited recent
speeches from President Raul Castro and other Cuban officials noting
that Havana shares terrorist threat information with Washington.
Obama
wrote that Cuba gave the U.S. a written assurance on April 3 committing
to renounce terrorism and cooperate in combatting terror. And Obama
credited Cuba with helping aid peace negotiations involving the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and the Spanish Basque
separatist group ETA — groups the State Department previously accused
Cuba of sheltering. Obama said although Cuba still allows about two
dozen members of ETA to remain in the country, it is working with Spain
on resolving an extradition request and Spain has no objections to
removing Cuba from the list.
Cuba's
removal from the terror list will likely make it easier to get credit
from non-U.S. banks, transfer funds between countries and conduct a host
of other international financial transactions. The remaining nations on
the list are Iran, Sudan and Syria.
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