President Barack Obama has lifted all restrictions on travel and money transfers by Cuban-Americans to Cuba for the first time in three decades, the White House announced. “President Obama has directed that a series of steps be taken to reach out to the Cuban people to support their desire to enjoy basic human rights and to freely determine their country's future,” spokesman Robert Gibbs said. “The president would like to see greater freedom for the Cuban people. There are actions that he can and has taken today to open up the flow of information,” Gibbs told reporters. “The president has directed the secretaries of state, treasury, and commerce to carry out the actions necessary to lift all restrictions on the ability of individuals to visit family members in Cuba and to send them remittances,” Gibbs said. The spokesman said the U.S. actions were only one part of the equation, suggesting that Cuba must do more as well. “There are some steps that the Cuban government can and must take,” he said. With the changes, the Obama administration seeks to reduce Cubans' dependence on the Castro government, hoping that will lead them to demand progress on political freedoms, Gibbs said. About 1.5 million Americans have relatives on the Caribbean island that has been ruled by a communist government since 1959. Obama's decision does not eliminate Washington's trade embargo against Cuba established 47 years ago but it does offer the chance for improving relations between the two longtime enemies.
