Simons Chase 
For Cubans, July 26th (Movimiento 26 de Julio) commemorates the day in 1953 some now famous young Cubans stormed the Moncada Barracks in the city of Santiago de Cuba to dislodge the Batista dictatorship. Though that uprising failed, it was the beginning of a movement that changed the world by putting in motion Castro’s leftist … Read more
by Cuba Journal staff In an effort to diversify its tourism industry, Cuba’s Tourism Ministry (Mintur) announced recently it will launch the Tobacco Trail (or Tobacco Route) during this year’s tourism and nature fair (Turnat) in the provence of Pinar del Rio. The September fair will expose tourists to the heart of the tobacco growing … Read more
by Cuba Journal staff “No one wants to miss the train,” said Herman Portocarero, the European Union’s ambassador to Cuba, as reported by Reuters. Last week Cuba hosted more than 75 Spanish companies including a delegation headed by Jose Manuel Soria, Spain’s minister of industry, energy and tourism; also attending were 140 Italian firms, joined … Read more
by Simons Chase According to economic development theory, technology transfer and deregulation hold great promise as a pathway for developing countries, like Cuba, to lift incomes, stimulate foreign direct investment and enhance quality of life. To date, the ligature between this type of neoclassical growth model and actual results has been government policy supported by … Read more
by Cuba Journal Staff According to TVInsider, Cuban Chrome will explore the island nation’s car culture and the people who maintain its classic cars. US vehicles haven’t been imported to Cuba since the embargo began in 1960 – the embargo also applies to parts. Executive producer Craig Piligian says Cuban Chrome was in the works … Read more
Despite President Obama’s recent initiative to normalize bilateral relations, US Congress remains a major obstacle to Cuba’s decades long political and economic estrangement. The Helms-Burton Act in particular requires outstanding claims against Cuba to be resolved before sanctions are lifted – and also limits executive authority to fully lift sanctions until Cuba’s government is democratically … Read more
Filling the vacuum left by the unmendable rift between Cuba’s iron ideology and its now tangible economic and political outcome is a group of dedicated US entrepreneurs with a mission to change the lives of millions of Cubans. Dabbling in the DNA of the island nation’s economy – and its culture – in its formative … Read more
Cuba’s emergence from isolation is stirring up excitement about its colorful past as well as its shiny future. One relatively obscured aspect of Cuba’s renewed engagement with the rest of the world is the role the island nation played in shaping the life and writing of one of America’s most important authors, Ernest Hemingway. Central … Read more
While President Obama has started the process to remove Cuba’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, other immediate changes to the US’s Cuba sanctions policy are already having an impact. On January 15, the US Treasury Department and US Commerce Department issued amendments to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) and the Export Administration … Read more
Last week Airbnb become one of the first U.S. companies to establish a local presence since President Obama and Cuban President Raúl Castro announced in December that they would restore diplomatic ties after more than 50 years of tension. Presently, there are about 1,000 listings concentrated mostly in Havana. Called casas particulares, average room rates … Read more
