NewSigns of the times: Americans can now bring home more Cuban rum and cigars

US President Barack Obama on Friday sought to cement his administration’s rapprochement with Cuba, unveiling a new round of loosened trade rules, including lifting limits on rum and cigar imports.

In a statement, Obama said a new policy directive laid out an official framework for continuing normalisation of relations with the island nation that was aimed at making this “irreversible.”

“This new directive consolidates and builds upon the changes we’ve already made, promotes transparency by being clear about our policy and intentions, and encourages further engagement between our countries and our people,” Obama said.

The move makes normalisation federal policy even though Congress has not lifted the fifty-year-old US trade embargo on Cuba, according to senior administration officials who spoke to reporters in a conference call. The two countries announced the start of normalisation in 2014.

The changes could be reversed when a new administration takes office, they said, speaking on grounds of anonymity, but presidential directives generally remain in effect until further notice.

Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said in a statement the changes seek to break down economic barriers, allowing more personal contact among Cubans and Americans and growth in the private sector.