The US Embassy in Havana began issuing a limited number of residence permits to Cubans this week, fulfilling an earlier promise to resume the visa process after a four-year hiatus.
The US State Department under former US President Donald Trump drastically reduced the staff of the US embassy in 2017 after a series of “Strange health incidents”which became known as “the Havana syndrome. ”
Cubans wishing to immigrate had to personally apply for residence permits at US embassies, first in Colombia and later in Guyana, while incurring the financial cost of travel, which they could not cover.
On Tuesday, the US Embassy in Havana has processed the first applications despite announcing that it will limit the services provided to parents of US citizens, who make up a fraction of the total number of people seeking to move to the US.
“We are pleased that the limited resumption of the Havana visa process has started well.” The US embassy said on social media yesterday. “We look forward to processing many more residence permits in the future and continuing to expand the offer of our consular services in Havana.”
The United States has said it will step up its efforts to process applications for Cuban residence permits at the US embassy in Guyana to reduce the backlog of applications for staff reductions during the pandemic.
Outside the US embassy in Havana, 23-year-old Cuban Maria Isabel Pfeiffer said she had heard about the embassy reopening and came to ask about the progress of her mother-in-law’s request to travel to see her in the US.
“Bringing American parents and children together is a breakthrough.” she said. “But it needs to be done for everyone,” Pfeiffer added.
The reopening of the US embassy comes as tens of thousands of Cubans have fled their homeland in recent months for the United States, given the severe economic crisis that has caused long queues for the supply of food, medicine and other basic goods. .
Many flew to Nicaragua, which in November lifted the issuance of residence permits for Cubans heading north to the Mexican border on a costly and often costly trip.
Cuba says the United States is causing immigration and social unrest on the island by stepping up restrictions imposed during the Cold War to worsen economic hardship in Cuba, while failing to meet previous US commitments to issue 2,000 annual leave permits. Cubans who want to immigrate.
The United States has said that the reopening of its embassy and the issuance of residence permits from Havana is a step forward for a safer and more controlled flow of migrants.
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