BRUSSELS--The European Union is threatening to sue the U.S. at the World Trade Organization and warning of economic penalties against U.S. firms if Washington extends sanctions against Cuba in ways that could hit European companies.
The move comes amid growing European concerns that the Trump administration is considering fully implementing the 1996 Helms-Burton Act, which would allow U.S. nationals to lodge claims in U.S. courts against foreign firms that do business in and with Cuba.
U.S. officials have recently signaled that increased European efforts to squeeze Cuba over its human rights record at home and its support for the Maduro government in Venezuela could be factored into their next steps on Helms-Burton, according to several European diplomats.
After the act was passed in 1996, President Bill Clinton issued a waiver on one part of the act, known as Title III, to prevent U.S. claimants suing foreign companies in U.S. courts under the act. Under European and Canadian pressure, the waiver has been extended every six months since.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has repeatedly shortened the waiver to warn companies off further investments in Cuba. In March, he shortened it to 30 days and allowed U.S. lawsuits against some Cuban companies with ties to the military. The latest waiver runs for 14 days from April 18 to May 1.
President Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, is expected to make an announcement about the administration's Cuba policy on Wednesday.
In a letter to Mr. Pompeo dated April 10, the EU's foreign-policy chief Federica Mogherini and European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said the recent U.S. decisions are "raising serious concerns across the EU."
They warned that if the U.S. fully applies the law, removing the Title III waiver, "the EU will be obliged to use all means at its disposal," including a possible launch of a case at the WTO and the lodging of counterclaims in European courts against any U.S. firm who took action under Helms-Burton in a U.S. court.
Noting that most of the 50 largest U.S. claimants under Helms-Burton have assets in the EU, the officials said these companies could be targeted.
