U.S. to allow lawsuits over property in Cuba

The Trump administration on Wednesday said it would allow lawsuits against foreign firms operating on properties Cuba seized from Americans after the 1959 Cuban revolution. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo justified the policy shift by pointing to Cuba’s repression of its people, refusal to enact Democratic reforms, and “exportation of tyranny” to countries like Venezuela. Starting May 2, Americans will have the right, under a 1996 U.S. law, to sue companies that operate out of hotels, tobacco factories, distilleries, and other properties Cuba nationalized after Fidel Castro took power. Every U.S. president since Bill Clinton has suspended a key clause in the law to avoid trade clashes. The change could affect dozens of Canadian and European companies, and countries around the globe have protested the move.

President Donald Trump has toughened other economic policies toward Cuba recently, including a policy that would have allowed Cuban baseball players to sign with U.S. professional teams without defecting. The administration has also rolled back trade and travel allowances toward Cuba that President Barack Obama initiated.