[House Document 105-221]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
105th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 105-221
TELECOMMUNICATIONS PAYMENTS TO
THE GOVERNMENT OF CUBA
FROM UNITED STATES PERSONS
__________
MESSAGE
FROM
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
TRANSMITTING
THE SEMIANNUAL REPORT FOR THE PERIOD JULY 1 THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 1997,
DETAILING PAYMENTS MADE TO CUBA BY ANY UNITED STATES PERSON AS A RESULT
OF THE PROVISION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES AUTHORIZED BY THE CUBAN
DEMOCRACY ACT OF 1992, PURSUANT TO 22 U.S.C. 6032
March 4, 1998.--Message referred to the Committee on International
Relations and ordered to be printed
________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
59-011 WASHINGTON : 1998
To the Congress of the United States:
This report is submitted pursuant to 1705(e)(6) of the
Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, 22 U.S.C. 6004(e)(6) (the
``CDA''), as amended by section 102(g) of the Cuban Liberty and
Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996, Public Law 104-
114 (March 12, 1996), 110 Stat. 785, 22 U.S.C. 6021-91 (the
``LIBERTAD Act''), which requires that I report to the Congress
on a semiannual basis detailing payments made to Cuba by any
United States person as a result of the provision of
telecommunications services authorized by this subsection.
The CDA, which provides that telecommunications services
are permitted between the United States and Cuba, specifically
authorizes the President to provide for payments to Cuba by
license. The CDA states that licenses may be issued for full or
partial settlement of telecommunications services with Cuba,
but may not require any withdrawal from a blocked account.
Following enactment of the CDA on October 23, 1992, a number of
U.S. telecommunications companies successfully negotiated
agreements to provide telecommunications services between the
United States and Cuba consistent with policy guidelines
developed by the Department of State and the Federal
Communications Commission.
Subsequent to enactment of the CDA, the Department of the
Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) amended the
Cuban Assets Control Regulations, 31 C.F.R. Part 515 (the
``CACR''), to provide for specific licensing on a case-by-case
basis for certain transactions incident to the receipt or
transmission of telecommunications between the United States
and Cuba, 31 C.F.R. 515.542(c), including settlement of charges
under traffic agreements.
The OFAC has issued eight licenses authorizing transactions
incident to the receipt or transmission of telecommunications
between the United States and Cuba since the enactment of the
CDA. None of these licenses permits payments to the Government
of Cuba from a blocked. account. For the period July 1 through
December 31, 1997, OFAC-licensed U.S. carriers reported
payments to the Government in Cuba in settlement of charges
under telecommunications traffic agreements as follows:
AT&T Corporation (formally, American Telephone and
Telegraph Company).................................. $11,991,715
AT&T de Puerto Rico..................................... 298,916
Global One (formerly, Sprint Incorporated).............. 3,180,886
IDB WorldCom Services, Inc. (formerly, IDB
Communications, Inc.)............................... 4,128,371
MCI International, Inc. (formerly, MCI Communications
Corporation)........................................ 4,893,699
Telefonica Larga Distancia de Puerto Rico, Inc.......... 105,848
WilTel, Inc. (formerly, WilTel Underseas Cable, Inc.)... 5,608,751
WorldCom, Inc. (formerly, LDDS Communications, Inc.).... 2,887,684
----------------
Total............................................. 33,095,870
I shall continue to report semiannually on
telecommunications payments to the Government of Cuba from
United States persons.
William J. Clinton.
The White House, March 4, 1998.