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"State Sponsors of Terrorism" is a designation applied to countries that are alleged to have "repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism" per the United States Department of State. Inclusion on the list enables the United States government to impose four main types of unilateral sanctions: a restriction of foreign aid, a ban on weapons sales, heightened control over the export of dual-use equipment, and other miscellaneous economic sanctions. The State Department is required to maintain the list under section 1754(c) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act, and section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act. The countries that were once on the list but have since been removed are: Iraq, Libya, South Yemen (dissolved in 1990), and Sudan. A resolution concerning the addition of Russia to the list was introduced to the Senate following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but was not adopted into law.<!-- Why is this sentence here? Is this a comprehensive list of every country that has been proposed to be added to the list? Why are we focusing on this one? -->
Timeline
{| class=wikitable style="font-size:90%; line-height:1.3"
!colspan=48 | Timeline: U.S. State Department's "State Sponsors of Terrorism"
|-
| colspan="1" style="vertical-align:top; text-align:center; padding-left:1px; padding-right:1px" | 1970s
|colspan=10| 1980s
|colspan=10| 1990s
|colspan=10| 2000s
|colspan=10| 2010s
|colspan=7 | 2020s
|-style=text-align:center
|9
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<!--Syria 1979-present -->
|-
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0 style="border-right:none; padding-right:0"|
|colspan=44 bgcolor=#D0D0D0 style="border-left:none; border-right:none; padding-left:0; padding-right:0"|
|colspan=3 bgcolor=#D0D0D0 style="border-left:none; padding-left:0; padding-right:0"|
<!--Libya 1979-2006-->
|-
|colspan=28 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=20|
<!--Iraq 1979-1982, 1990-2004 -->
|-
|colspan=4 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=7|
|colspan=14 bgcolor=#D0D0D0 style="border-right:none; padding-right:0"|
|colspan=1 bgcolor=#D0D0D0 style="border-left:none; padding-left:0"|
|colspan=22|
<!--South Yemen 1979-1990-->
|-
|colspan=12 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=36|
<!--Cuba 1982-2015, 2021-2025, 2025-present-->
|-
|colspan=3|
|colspan=34 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=5|
|colspan=6 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
<!--Iran 1984-present -->
|-
|colspan=5|
|colspan=43 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
<!--North Korea 1988-2008 2017-present -->
|-
|colspan=9|
|colspan=21 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=8|
|colspan=10 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
<!--Sudan 1993-2020-->
|-
|colspan=14|
|colspan=28 bgcolor=#D0D0D0|
|colspan=6|
|}
Countries currently on the list
Cuba (1982–2015, 2021–present)
Cuba was added to the list on March 1, 1982, on the basis that it has a history of supporting revolutionary movements in Spanish-speaking countries and Africa.
<blockquote>Havana openly advocates armed revolution as the only means for leftist forces to gain power in Latin America, and the Cubans have played an important role in facilitating the movement of men and weapons into the region. Havana provides direct support in the form of training, arms, safe havens, and advice to a wide variety of guerrilla groups. Many of these groups engage in terrorist operations.</blockquote>
According to the U.S. Department of State, Cuba "encouraged terrorism in the hope of provoking indiscriminate violence and repression, in order to weaken government legitimacy and attract new converts to armed struggle". In 1992, after the Soviet collapse, Fidel Castro stressed that his country's support for insurgents abroad was a thing of the past.
On December 17, 2014, an agreement to restore relations with Cuba was reached (Cuban thaw); President Barack Obama instructed the Secretary of State to immediately launch a review of Cuba's inclusion on the list, and provide a report to the President within six months regarding Cuba's alleged support for international terrorism. President Barack Obama announced on April 14, 2015, that Cuba was being removed from the list. Cuba would not come off the list until after a 45-day review period, during which the U.S. Congress could try blocking Cuba's removal via a joint resolution. Congress did not act, and Cuba was officially removed from the list on May 29, 2015.
Cuba was readded to the list on January 12, 2021, The redesignation came just eight days before Donald Trump's first presidency ended on January 20 at noon.
On January 14, 2025, U.S. President Joe Biden notified Congress of his proposed removal of Cuba from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism. The proposed removal was part of a Vatican-brokered deal that would see the release of 553 prisoners detained for "diverse crimes", including those arrested during the 2021 Cuban anti-government protests. According to a senior official of the Biden administration, an assessment on Cuba had been completed and found that there was no information supporting Cuba's designation. However, on January 20, 2025, succeeding President Donald Trump revoked the proposed removal of Cuba from the list. The proposed removal never took effect as it required a waiting period of 45 days, which would have been on February 28, 2025.
Iran (1984–present)
Iran was added to the list on January 19, 1984. According to Country Reports on Terrorism 2013: