Washington - The National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) has applauded the reintroduction in the U.S. Senate of the Freedom to Travel to Cuba Act, an initiative supported by 54 legislators.

The Americans in both parties overwhelmingly support the repeal of the legislative barrier to the right to travel freely to the island, the organization said in a statement issued on Thursday on the project led by Republican Jeff Flake and Democrat Patrick Leahy.

According to the entity, repealing the travel ban will strengthen the U.S. interests in the hemisphere, promote economic and cultural ties between the two countries, and encourage a shared interest in discussing the national security concerns of both nations.

A vote in the Senate to overturn that restriction will reinforce the United States' commitment to normalize the diplomatic, trade and civic ties with Cuba, with appropriate bilateral bonds for the 21st century, NFTC vice president, Richard Sawaya, said.

Jake Colvin, Vice President of Global Trade Issues at the NFTC, said many Americans would probably be surprised to know that their government still restricts their right to travel.

Ending the ban would eliminate this ridiculous limitation and promote connections with Cuban entrepreneurs and communities. We encourage the Congress and President (Donald) Trump to act swiftly on the senators' initiative, he said.

The regulations that were reintroduced yesterday would raise the current restrictions that prevent the citizens from this country to visit the Caribbean nation for tourism purposes.

Flake and Leahy said in a statement that these imposed restrictions do not exist for the trips of the Americans to other nations.

Yesterday's measure is an important progress for the bill, previously introduced in the Congress with eight co-sponsors, and now has an additional 46. At present, the Americans can only go to the neighboring country under 12 categories authorized by Washington, but according to the ‘Engage Cuba' coalition, about 81 percent of U.S. citizens support travel to that destination.