By Kaye Foley



In this week's "Now I Get It," Katie Couric explains the Cuba embargo controversy.



Talks on normalizing diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba resumed at the end of February. The second round in a series of discussions examined how the two countries will proceed in restoring their relationship after more than 50 years, following President Obama’s historic announcement in December 2014. Obama wants to reopen the U.S. embassy in Havana and ease up on travel and trade restrictions.

Although officials on both sides are optimistic about the talks, many tough issues still need to be resolved. The U.S. plans to address Cuba’s civil aviation, Internet policies, connections and human rights issues. For Cuba, it’s a priority to be removed from the State Department’s list of State Sponsors of Terrorism. And there’s still the issue of whether to lift the U.S. embargo.

The relationship between these two countries wasn’t always so strained. But in 1959, Fidel Castro led a revolt to overthrow pro-American dictator, Fulgencio Batista. Castro limited the influence of the United States by nationalizing all American businesses in Cuba and by making fellow communist country, the Soviet Union, Cuba’s closest ally.

That’s when President Dwight Eisenhower implemented the initial trade and travel restrictions on Cuba in an effort to weaken Castro’s hold on the country. However throughout half a century of high-tension situations, such as the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis, as well as the installment of the official embargo, the countries have remained in a stalemate, and Castro’s regime has maintained control.

Many across the world and in Washington argue that the embargo hasn’t worked. It has failed to oust the leadership and has hurt the Cuban people as well as restricted free trade. The U.N. general assembly has voted 23 times to condemn the embargo. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., who visited Cuba in February, said, “The government of Cuba has tried to convince the Cuban people that the problem is the American embargo. So if we remove that excuse, it will put the people in a much stronger position to push for reform.”

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But others feel that the U.S. should not return to a friendly relationship with Cuba until a new government is in place and free speech and human rights abuses are addressed.

Although President Obama has initiated the dialogue with Cuba, when it comes to the embargo, Congress must decide whether or not to remove it.

As the U.S. settles on how to redefine its relationship with Cuba, when it comes to the embargo controversy, at least after you watch this video, you can say, “Now I get it.”







