April 13 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama is lifting all travel limits for Cuban-Americans to Cuba, part of a larger set of policy changes aimed at promoting freedom in the communist island nation.

Obama is also ending restrictions on how much money Cuban- Americans can send family members, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters today. U.S. telecommunications companies can now apply for licenses to operate in Cuba, easing the commercial embargo against the country, a move that an administration statement said may enable them to provide television and mobile-phone service in Cuba.

“This is a significant step in reaching out to the Cuban people and supporting their desires to live in freedom,” said Daniel Restrepo, a special assistant to the president.

Obama’s decision, announced days before the president is set to meet with Latin American leaders at a hemispheric summit, comes as U.S. lawmakers such as Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus are pressing him to go further in normalizing relations with Cuba.

Obama is aiming to boost the amount of information flowing into the Caribbean country, ultimately leading to more freedom for the people there, Gibbs said. The response from Raul Castro’s regime, however, will determine whether the new policies are successful, Gibbs said.

‘Greater Freedom’

“The president would like to see greater freedom for the Cuban people,” Gibbs said. “But he’s not the only person in this equation.”

Latin American leaders are likely to pressure Obama at the weekend Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago to end the 47-year-old U.S. embargo against Cuba. Administration officials have said he has no plans to do so.

Obama’s aides pointed today to the president’s campaign pledge to abolish bans on family travel and remittances that were imposed by former President George W. Bush. Obama has said it makes “moral and strategic sense” to do so.

Obama believes that the “best ambassadors for freedom” begin with family members, Restrepo said.

“This is the step he is taking to advance the cause of freedom to the Cuban people, to advance our national interest,” said Restrepo, who also gave remarks in Spanish. “We understand that others have different views on how best to accomplish that.”

Senator John Kerry, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said Obama’s announcement is “the right call.”

‘Responsive to Reality’

“These changes are both compassionate and responsive to reality,” Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, said in a statement. “Granting Cuban-Americans the right to send financial aid to their relatives will make those relatives less dependent on the Castro regime.”

Baucus, a Montana Democrat, also praised Obama’s moves, while saying the administration needs to go further.

“This is a good first step, but we can and should do more,” Baucus said in a statement. “I urge the president to relax restrictions on the sale of U.S. agriculture products to Cuba. We need to make it easier for America’s farmers and ranchers to sell their high-quality products.”

Obama has instructed the Commerce Department to consider the resumption of direct commercial flights to Cuba, Gibbs said.

In the immediate future, charter flights will likely increase, said Restrepo, senior director for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the White House National Security Council. “There are charter flights that exist,” Restrepo said. “Those, in all likelihood, will have to expanded.”

Fishing Equipment

The revised policies also include permitting a wider range of items to be sent to Cuba, including fishing equipment, clothes and personal-hygiene products, according to an overview of the changes released by the White House.

U.S. telecommunications network providers will now be allowed to establish fiber-optic links or satellite service for Cuba, and satellite television and radio companies can make the sales necessary to provide service in Cuba.

The changes were made through presidential orders to the State, Treasury and Commerce departments.

A closed-end mutual fund that aims to profit from the resumption of U.S. trade with Cuba posted its biggest rally since being created in 1994, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund climbed 41 percent to $7.97. Its top holdings are Merriam, Kansas-based Seaboard Corp., a pork producer, and Coconut Grove, Florida-based Watsco Inc., a distributor of air conditioners and heaters.

To contact the reporters on this story: Kim Chipman in Washington at kchipman@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 13, 2009 18:30 EDT