inistration has removed Cuba from a list of countries considered security risks - a move that will ease restrictions on ocean travel to and from the island nation.
The announcement, coming just days before Barack Obama visits Havana, makes it easier for US cruise ships, cargo vessels and ferries to travel between the two countries.
Ships that visit Cuba will no longer be subject to onerous security measures before re-entering American ports, although the US Coast will still have the authority to conduct random checks.
The move is the latest in a series of developments between the former Cold War foes since presidents Obama and Raul Castro announced a normalising of relations in December 2014.
This week, Mr Obama issued sweeping regulations to promote more US travel and trade to Cuba.
It was the fifth time the President has used executive powers to sidestep the Republican-controlled Congress which has refused to lift a 54-year-old economic embargo against Cuba.
Tourism to Cuba still remains officially barred by US law, but the legal reasons for US travellers to go to Cuba have been widely extended and are loosely enforced.
However, the number of legal reasons for US travellers to go to Cuba have been widely extended and are loosely enforced.
The number of US visitors to Cuba soared 77% in 2015, and hotels and restaurants have been booked to capacity, Reuters reports.
Last month, the two countries announced they had reached a deal to restore commercial flights.
The agreement calls for as many as 110 daily flights from the US to cities across Cuba, including 20 regular daily flights to Havana by next autumn.
Mr Obama is scheduled to arrive in Cuba on Sunday, making him the first sitting US President to visit Havana since Calvin Coolidge in 1928.
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