    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1998, Book I)]
    [March 4, 1998]
    [Page 330]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 330]]

    Message to the Congress Reporting on Telecommunications Services
    Payments to Cuba
    March 4, 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 of Cuba in settlement of charges
    under telecommunications traffic agreements as follows:

      AT&T Corporation (formally, American Telephone and         $11,991,715
       Telegraph Company)
      AT&T de Puerto Rico                                            298,916
      Global One (formerly, Sprint Incorporated)                   3,180,886
      IDB WorldCom Services, Inc. (formerly, IDB                   4,128,371
       Communications, Inc.)
      MCI International, Inc. (formerly, MCI Communications        4,893,699
       Corporation)
      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.