A new batch of companies may soon be able to operate in Cuba if the Obama administration can persuade Havana to finalize agreements, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the discussions.
If the White House succeeds, Google, General Electric, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, Royal Caribbean and Pearl Seas Cruises could all announce the deals in the upcoming weeks, the newspaper said.
The Journal said the deals aim to more firmly secure President Barack Obama's endeavors to thaw U.S.-Cuba relations. Obama was the first American president to visit the isolated island nation in nearly 90 years and has pushed for normalizing relations with Cuba.
The president forged the effort by exercising his executive power, something President-elect Donald Trump could undo once he takes office. On Monday, Trump threatened to "terminate" the Cuba agreement if the country is "unwilling to make a better deal for the Cuban people."
Longtime Cuban leader Fidel Castro, who preserved communism on the island for decades, died last week. His brother Raul became president in 2008.