By Caribbean News Global 
WASHINGTON, USA – The Department of State announced the addition of Banco Financiero International S.A. (BFI) to the Cuba restricted list, effective upon publication in early January.
“BFI is a Cuban military-controlled commercial bank that benefits directly from financial transactions at the expense of the Cuban people,” said the State Department. “The Cuban military uses BFI’s key role in foreign exchange to give military and state companies preferential access, secure advantageous exchange rates, and finance government-controlled projects that enrich the regime. The profits earned from these operations disproportionately benefit the Cuban military rather than independent Cuban entrepreneurs, furthering repression of the Cuban people and funding Cuba’s interference in Venezuela.”
President Donald Trump has made it clear that he stands with the Cuban people in their longstanding struggle for freedom and against the communist regime in Havana.
According to the State Department: “Adding BFI to the Cuba restricted list furthers the administration’s goal of preventing the Cuban military from controlling and benefiting from financial transactions that should instead benefit the Cuban people.”
Cuba’s foreign minister, Bruno Rodriguez, rejected the announcement tweeted: “Punitive measure of #US State Department to tighten blockade against #Cuba,” adding, “The inclusion of Cuban entities in its lists is intended to reinforce an economic siege that has failed to destroy the Cuban Revolution after 62 years,” Rodriguez wrote.
The Cuban Revolution last Friday marked 62 years of resistance to the US blockade, which was intensified during president Donald Trump’s administration. On New Year’s Eve, president Miguel Diaz-Canel congratulated the people and called for unity, the only possible way for the Revolution to keep moving forward.
The president of the Republic of Cuba Miguel Díaz-Canel has also denounced the attempts of the United States government to include the island in its list of countries sponsoring terrorism.
“We denounce the unilateral, absurd, hypocritical and unjust manoeuvre of the US government to include Cuba in its list of state sponsors of terrorism. That government welcomes terrorist groups that act against #Cuba. #CubaViva,” he tweeted.
“We denounce the unilateral, absurd, hypocritical and unfair manoeuvre of the US government to include Cuba in its list of state sponsors of terrorism”, said Diaz-Canel.
