President Díaz-Canel recalls Helms-Burton Act signing

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel on Sunday recalled the signing of the Helms-Burton Act 27 years ago, legislation he considered as unconstitutional for attempting to treat Cuba as another U.S. possession.

On Twitter, the Cuban leader posted that despite the 1996 Act signing by then President Bill Clinton, Cuba remains sovereign and independent.

Such an Act defines restrictions on trade, transactions, travels, purchase and sale of properties in which Cuba or its natural citizens have an interest in. With its enactment, it eliminated the unilateral possibility of lifting the blockade imposed on Cuba, establishing it will remain in force until Washington manages to reach a transitional government in Cuba.

The third and fourth sections of the Helms-Burton Act have kept unchanged through 2019, when President Donald Trump authorized its implementation in order to make normalization in relations between Cuba and the United States impossible.