[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 20 (Wednesday, March 4, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1334-S1335]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 REPORT ON TELECOMMUNICATIONS PAYMENTS TO THE GOVERNMENT OF CUBA FROM 
            U.S. PERSONS--MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT--PM 106

  The PRESIDING OFFICER laid before the Senate the following message 
from the President of the United States, together with an accompanying 
report; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.

To the Congress of the United States:

[[Page S1335]]

  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 of Cuba in settlement of 
charges under telecommunications traffic agreements as follows:

                                                                 Amount
AT&T Corporation (formally, American Telephone and Telegraph$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, Inc4,128,371
MCI International, Inc. (formerly, MCI Communications Corporat4,893,699
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
                                                       ________________
                                                           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.

                          ____________________