U.S., Cuba set for historic talks to normalize ties
The United States and Cuba will hold their highest level talks in decades on Wednesday, moving to reopen embassies and normalize ties after decades of Cold War-era hostility. Senior U.S. and Cuban officials will meet over two days in Havana to discuss immigration and a roadmap to return ambassadors to each other’s nations, more than half a century after full diplomatic relations broke off in 1961. The talks in the Cuban capital come five weeks after U.S. President Barack Obama and Cuban counterpart Raul Castro simultaneously made the momentous announcement that their countries would seek to normalize ties. The first day of the talks will center on migration - an issue that has vexed both nations for decades, with Cubans hopping on rickety boats to traverse 145 kilometres of shark-infested waters to reach Florida.
In addition to the re-accreditation of our diplomats, we are looking forward to the Cubans lifting travel restrictions, to trying to lift to the cap on the number of our diplomatic personal, to trying to gain unimpeded shipments for our mission and to the free access to our mission by Cubans.
A senior State Department official
Cubans have voiced hope that the warming ties will translate into improvements in their daily lives in a country where supermarket shelves are bare and people make around $20 a month. The Obama administration already took a major step on Friday when it used executive powers to loosen some travel and trade restrictions. While the move will allow more Americans to visit Cuba and do business with the communist country, the U.S. Congress still has the final say on ending a five-decade-old embargo that has forbidden most commerce and general tourism. For Cuba, a crucial part of the negotiations will be getting its name out of a U.S. blacklist of nations that sponsor terrorism, which has prevented the government from qualifying for credit from international financial institutions.
I think that [the] visit is, without a doubt, historic and it will bring changes, but it’s important to be aware that you can’t expect sudden miracles.
Peter Schechter, Latin America analyst at the Atlantic Council, a US think tank
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