Latin America News: Trump Administration Bans Cruises To Cuba

The Trump administration has announced new measures to make it more difficult for American tourists to visit Cuba, with cruises and other recreational vessels being prohibited from visiting the island.

"Cuba continues to be a destabilizing role in the Western hemisphere, providing a communist foothold in the region and propping up U.S. adversaries in places like Venezuela and Nicaragua by fomenting instability, undermining the rule of law and suppressing democratic processes,' U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said in a statement Tuesday.

"This administration has made a strategic decision to reverse the loosening of sanctions and other restrictions on the Cuban regime. These actions will help keep U.S. dollars out of the hands of Cuban military, intelligence and security services," the statement continued.

Carnival cruise line had to immediately change its plans for one of ships heading to Cuba, sending it instead to Cozumel, Mexico and giving its passengers a $100 credit, CNN reported.

Although tourist travel to Cuba for U.S. citizens is banned, cultural and educational travel there is allowed in some cases.

Cuba backs Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who the U.S. administration would like to see deposed. Cuba also supports the left-wing Nicaraguan government of Daniel Ortega, which opposes the United States.

Trump's hardening stance over Cuba is a reversal of his predecessor, Barack Obama, whose administration saw a loosening of ties with the country. In 2015, the United States resumed diplomatic relations with Cuba under Obama, in a period which became known as the "Cuban thaw."