July 2, 2025 — Belly of the Beast
The U.S. embassy in Havana posted a video on social media of U.S. Chargé d’Affaires Mike Hammer visiting Cuban beach resort Varadero. In the video, Hammer took a jab at the number of Russian tourists there.
“I’m still touring Cuba, this time in Varadero with my family,” reads a comment posted by the diplomat on the embassy’s instagram account. “I’m telling you I hear a lot of Russian.”
Hammer’s comments cynically overlooks how Russian tourism to Cuba has become increasingly noticeable in large part because tightened U.S. travel restrictions have intentionally driven away visitors from the U.S. and Europe.
U.S. citizens are prohibited from visiting Cuba as tourists. Despite this, people from the U.S. flocked to the island during Obama’s opening, traveling under authorized categories such as “people-to-people” travel.
U.S. citizens can still visit Cuba under similar categories (learn more about how HERE), but Trump’s policy, which included banning cruise ships from visiting the island, has resulted in a massive drop-off in U.S. travel.
Biden kept most of Trump’s “maximum pressure” strategy in place, which included listing Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism.”
One of the results of this designation — for which no credible evidence exists — is that it strips Europeans who visit Cuba of their U.S. visa waiver. For example, a tourist from England can fill out a simple online form before going to the U.S. But if they’ve set foot in Cuba, they would be barred from entry to the U.S. unless they go through the lengthy process of applying for a visa.
Watch our video and hear what European travelers think of the U.S. measure HERE.
Not only has the number of travelers dramatically dropped in the last five years, but many Cuban property owners and tour guides can no longer use U.S. booking companies.
Expedia’s license to operate in Cuba was not renewed this year. The company has suspended all Cuba bookings.
In the meantime, Airbnb has stopped Cuba services unless the hosts use a bank account abroad. Airbnb’s move may stem from the inclusion of Orbit, a Cuban state company that handles foreign transactions, on a U.S. government list of entities off limits for U.S. citizens and companies. According to hosts interviewed by Belly of the Beast, Orbit was involved in their payment process.
The aim of these measures is to wipe out tourism, which is one of Cuba’s main sources of foreign currency.
Since arriving in Havana, Hammer has been posting videos urging Cubans to talk to him about their “concerns” and dreams.
For Cubans working in tourism, U.S. efforts to sabotage travel to the island are a major concern.
But concerns that hold the mirror up to U.S. policy don’t seem to be of interest to Hammer. In a video posted on Facebook, Hammer is seen talking with some Cubans in the street in Varadero. When he was asked when Cuba would be removed from the U.S. government’s terrorism list, he simply walked away.
