Cuba: U.S. to Continue 'Limited' Visa Services for Cubans; Havana Embassy to Increase Staff

The U.S. government announced on Thursday that it will resume its visa services for Cubans after the processing of the said document was halted in the embassy for about four years.

According to Al Jazeera, the move was announced by U.S. Diplomat for Havana Timothy Zuniga-Brown announced the move at a news conference on Thursday.

"[The embassy] will begin the limited resumption of some immigrant visa services, as part of a gradual expansion of the embassy's functions," Zuniga-Brown added.

Associated Press reported that the embassy would soon begin the processing of "some immigrant visas" for which documentation is already complete.

A statement from the U.S. Embassy pointed out that most of the visas will be processed in their facility located in Guyana. Meanwhile, the embassy located in Havana will reportedly focus on other consular services, as well as "limited emergency non-immigrant visa processing."

Despite the announcement of the visa processing resumption in Cuba, authorities did not mention the exact date when will the move be effective, La Prensa Latina Media reported. Furthermore, the outlet also mentioned that the number of Cubans seeking immigrant visas was also not identified by the authorities.

Cuba's U.S. Embassy to Increase Staff

Aside from the announcement of the visa processing resumption in Cuba, reports also highlighted that the U.S. Embassy in the country will beef up its staff and personnel.

Officials did not reveal how many diplomatic personnel will be sent back to Cuba's U.S. Embassy in Havana.

However, officials noted that the number of personnel to be deployed will help in addressing the more than four years of backlog of requests for immigration visas by Cubans who have relatives in the United States, per Al Jazeera.

Authorities also added that the deployment of the additional staff in Havana is a result of President Joe Biden's ongoing review of Cuba's policy.

It can be recalled that most of the U.S. diplomats in Cuba were withdrawn in 2017 after former President Donald trump's administration accused the nation of targeting some of the personnel with weapons that caused several symptoms called "Havana syndrome," per Associated Press.

However, the said condition was reported among other U.S. personnel around the world.

The government of Cuba denied any involvement in the accusation slammed by the U.S. government during that time.

Cuba: Number of Cubans Seeking U.S. Visa per Records

In the light of the visa processing pause, Associated Press noted that Cuba saw "unauthorized" migration attempts to the U.S. fueled by several factors, including the economic crisis, the pandemic, and cutbacks in aid from Venezuela.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) indicated that around 9,827 Cuban would-be migrants were detained in January 2021, per La Prensa Latina Media.

Reports also noted that Cubans who wish to earn asylum in the U.S. traveled through boats or trekked through Central America to reach the U.S.-Mexico border.

However, the majority of these Cubans were sent back to their home country due to a health order that was issued during the pandemic.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written By: Joshua Summers

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