Cuban Embargo Case Study

The embargo is estimated to have cost Cuba $1.126 trillion in lost revenue over the last 50 years. The embargo obviously restricts Cuba from buying a lot in the United States, but not everything. Cuba is only allowed to purchase certain things from the United States if they pay in cash. The United States can't buy anything from Cuba though. Due to the restrictions of purchasing things from the United States, Cuba mostly has automobiles from the 1950’s or 1960’s.

American international relations with Cuba have almost always been tense. The cold war solidified the growing negative relations, and the embargo embodied it. But now that the cold war is over, as is the Cuban missile crisis, we’re left to wonder if the embargo is really necessary. Should the United States lift the embargo of Cuba? All of the evidence, be it economic, diplomatic, or social, points to yes. We should lift the embargo.

The U.S. and Cuban controversies have been around since 1962. The president has decided that isolating Cuba has not worked and recently loosened travel restrictions and exports restrictions. Although this is a huge step to right directions economically, cultural effects so far have been minimal for both the U.S. and Cuba. Politically, Cuba is a socialist country, however, has been taking steps to democracy. For example, reforms breaking up government owned lands and authorizing self employment in many occupations. With the embargo lifted, it is expected that Cuba takes more steps in the right direction. On the economic side of things, Cuba still has strict control on foreign investment, but it is expected with time that investors will be

In 1959, Fidel Castro came into power by overthrowing Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista and from that moment on the United States was very skeptical about him. They felt this way because they were very much aware of Castro's relationship with the leader

to sell products in Cuba, and that it would no longer penalize other nations for

The Cuban people have been under the harsh dictatorship of both Felgenico Batista and Fidel Castro. They both had very strict policies and gave the Cuban people limited or no freedom at all. Batista and Castro were similar but yet different. One major difference that they had was that Batista was friendly with the United States and he had respect for American interest. On the other hand Fidel Castro hasn’t been as friendly with the United States, so the U.S has a trade embargo that restricts and American company to do business with Cuba and also U.S citizens are prohibited from traveling to Cuba unless for special circumstances.

The U.S. did not help their situation as they proceed to pressure and prevent other foreign nation from trade with them, resulting in Cuba to remain in isolation. This event not only hurt Cuba economically, but socially as well by depriving innocent people from access to the outside. However, the embargo was not meant to cause harm, instead it symbolizes a probable improvement in human rights. In 2016, the Human Right Watch, reported that Cuba was still, “repress dissent and discourage public criticism," resulting to be the primary reason the U.S. would consider lifting the embargo. The U.S. would like to see the Cuban government improve, in return, they would remove the ban on trade or commercial activities.

The U.S. imposed an Embargo against Cuba on Oct. 19, 1960. Has the time come to the United States to lift the five-decade embargo? The Embargo was a part of America’s Cold War strategy against the Soviet Union, imposed on the belief that Cuba was a threat to the U.S. since the Soviet Union was a danger to the National Security because of its alliance with the Soviet Union. Although Cuba would like the U.S to terminate the embargo against their country, the U.S. wants Cuba to make their situation a better living environment and to promote human rights for its citizens before any sanctions are removed.

From the time, Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba tensions ran high between the Cuban government and the United States government. Relations between Cuba and the United States grew during Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations. Not as much during the Eisenhower administration as the Kennedy administration did tensions between between the two countries intensify. Kennedy faced many a different situations as President. He faced such situations like the Bay of Pigs Invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Tensions have mounted high for a long time between Cuba and the United States.

Cuba and the Affects of the Embargo The island nation of Cuba, located just ninety miles off the coast of Florida, is home to 11 million people and has one of the few remaining communist regimes in the world. Cuba’s leader, Fidel Castro, came to power in 1959 and immediately instituted a communist program of sweeping economic and social changes. Castro allied his government with the Soviet Union and seized and nationalized billions of dollars of American property. U.S. relations with Cuba have been strained ever since. A trade embargo against Cuba that was imposed in 1960 is still in place today. Despite severe economic suffering and increasing isolation from the world community, Castro remains committed to communism. (Close Up

Embargoes are restrictions on trade between countries used to achieve some kind of goal. The United States has imposed an embargo on Cuba to encourage the Cuban government to change the way they run themselves because the United States does not agree with the system of government they have in place. This embargo enacts total restrictions on trade and travel between the United States and Cuba. The United States’ embargo against Cuba should be lifted because it is doing more harm than good to both countries involved.

For more than 50 years following its independence, Cuba was governed by a succession of elected and authoritarian leaders, culminating with rule of Fulgencio Batista, who seized power in a bloodless coup in 1952. Batista ruled as a brutal dictator and was overthrown by resistance groups led by Fidel Castro on January 1, 1959. Castro began his more than 45 years as Cuba’s leader by promising democratic rule, but he quickly began to stifle dissent often by imprisoning or executing opponents. Relations between Castro and the U.S. deteriorated quickly in 1959 and 1960 as he courted the Soviet Union, the U.S.’s adversary in the Cold War, and began confiscating Cuban property owned by U.S. corporations and citizens.

The history of Cuba has gone through many dramatic changes affecting not only the economy but the citizens as well. On January 1st, 1969 Dictator Fulgenico Batiste (Fidel Castro) fled the Island of Cuba, with his revolutionaries seizing control with the U.S backing the situation. This caused chaos and excitement in Havana, rumbling the idea of "anti-americanism." This relates back to the conflict theory, as this had a great impact on the citizens of Cuba, causing more hate on america and its people causing conflict and negativity. Within all of this chaos with Fidel Castro and Cuba’s people, America still supported the Island of Cuba. As time passed this situation caused great suspicion as the US was not sure of Castro’s intentions and his leftist ideology, thinking this would lead to an attack from Castro on US investments and properties in Cuba. American officials were nearly unanimous opposing Castro’s revolutionary movement.

In 1959, Cubareceived 74 percent of its imports from the US, and the US received 65 percentof Cuba’s exports. On February 3, 1962, the United States imposed a fulltrade embargo on Cuba, completely ending any type of trade between the twocountries. This embargo remains in effect today, more than four decades later,and has grown ! to be a huge center of debate and controversy (DeVarona 8).Opponents to the embargo argue that the embargo does nothing more than hurt theCuban people, while proponents argue that the embargo places pressure on Castroto repair Cuba’s mismanaged and corrupt government. Both the supportersand the opponents of this embargo have strong arguments and evidence to supportthese

The embargo has constrained the crossing of the borders for Cuban citizens, the exiles of Cuba and the businesses, its subsidiary to not be able to do their business in Cuba without facing penalties. This embargo has forbid the Cuban citizens’ contact to consumer goods that the United States presented. Cuba’s expansion of its infrastructure has also been limited therefore the country continues to be a poor country.