CUBA/FOREIGN POLICY/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “The Trump administration on Wednesday [11-8-17] continued to pare back rules intended to normalize ties with Cuba, announcing new regulations tightening travel and financial transactions by Americans.
President Donald Trump had said in June he would reverse steps taken by predecessor Barack Obama to relax a decades-old U.S. embargo against the Castro regime, as Mr. Trump had pledged on the campaign trail.
The regulatory changes unveiled by the Treasury, State and Commerce departments are to take effect Thursday. While they will have an impact on the ability of individuals to travel to Cuba and curtail some business interactions, however, much of Mr. Obama’s program will remain in place…
He added that the shift will make it harder for American businesses to operate in Cuba. ‘It doesn’t fully close the door, but it’s a step backwards.’
Many Americans who want to visit Cuba will have to do so by traveling through tour operators subject to U.S. jurisdiction and be accompanied by a representative of a sponsoring organization that is also subject to U.S. jurisdiction.”
-Felicia Schwartz and Louise Radnofsky, “New Trump Rules Pare Back Obama’s Opening to Cuba,” The Wall Street Journal online, Nov. 8, 2017 06:29pm