No Way, Usa!: The Lack of a Repatriation Agreement with Cuba and Its Effects on U.S. Immigration Policies

Abstract

Cuba and the United States have had a tumultuous relationship for over five decades now. Since the Revolution in Cuba, Cuban citizens have been immigrating to the United States in large numbers, including through two Cuban government-sponsored mass exoduses in 1980 and 1994. Throughout that time, the Cuban government refused to negotiate with the United States for the return of its citizens. Because of the lack of diplomatic relations, the two nations did not have a repatriation agreement in place and no agreedupon mechanism existed by which the United States could return Cuban citizens to the island nation. As such, the United States was left with no alternative but to implement the wet foot-dry foot policy in 1995. Following the reestablishment of relations between Cuba and the United States, President Obama repealed wet foot-dry foot as a condition of the newlyestablished repatriation agreement. Finally, Cuba agreed to take back its citizens who either attempted to enter the United States illegally or were deportable from the United States for some other reason. After his election in 2016, President Trump took a harsh stance on Cuban policy and reversed some of President Obama’s changes. This led to a strong response from the Cuban government and created an uncertain future for the newly-established repatriation agreement.