It appears that Cuba will participate in the World Baseball Classic after all. The United States Treasury Department has issued a license to allow the Cuban team to play in the tournament which will include games in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. An official announcement is expected shortly.
In mid-December, the U.S. government said that they would not permit the Cuban team to play based on the official government policy of non-involvement with that country's communist government led by dictator Fidel Castro.
The U.S. reconsidered after Cuba indicated it would donate any profits it receives from the event to the relief fund for victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Puerto Rico had threatened to withdraw as a host of the event if the Cubans were not allowed to participate. Major league baseball had also voiced its support for allowing Cuba to field a team.
Cuba has been very successful in international baseball tournaments in recent years. They have won the gold medal at the Olympics in 1992, 1996 and 2004. The United States won in 2000.
The World Baseball Classic is scheduled to take place in March. The location of the Cuban team's games has yet to be announced.
