US and Cuba to normalise diplomatic relations and end decades of hostility
The United States and Cuba have ended decades of cold war hostility by agreeing to normalise diplomatic and travel relations after 18 months of secret talks on prisoner releases brokered by the Vatican.
The surprise breakthrough came after a 45-minute phone call between Barack Obama and Raúl Castro on Tuesday finalised the release of Alan Gross, a US government aid contractor held for five years in Cuba, which accused him of being a spy.
But as he was dramatically flown back to the US on Wednesday accompanied by three congressmen, it became clear that a far larger deal had been agreed between the two countries, not just to release other prisoners and spies, but to restore ties between the countries that have been frozen since 1967.
“These steps will be the most significant change in our Cuba policy in more than 50 years,” said a senior US administration official in a White House briefing call for reporters.
“We fully expect we will continue to have strong differences, particularly on democracy and human rights ... [but] engagement is a better tool than isolation and nowhere is that more clear than Cuba,” the official added. “By opening up we will able to promote freedom.”
A full end to the US trade embargo of Cuba would require legislation in Congress, something for which there has been virtually no appetite until now, but the White House hopes that by using a series of executive actions to minimise its enforcement, it can provide a breakthrough that will encourage political reform in Cuba and soften political opposition in the US.
“We recognise that some members of Congress will strongly disagree with what the president is announcing today, but this will be an ongoing dialogue ... We believe a policy of engagement will be more effective.”
“It is clear that decades of US isolation of Cuba have failed to accomplish our enduring objective of promoting the emergence of a democratic, prosperous, and stable Cuba,” added the press secretary, Josh Earnest, in a written statement.
The talks, which first began in Canada last June and continued this autumn at the Vatican, also included the release of three Cuban spies held in the US and one American spy who has been held in Cuba for nearly 20 years. The US claimed Cuba had already agreed to release 53 political prisoners it has held, but insisted the release of Gross was separate and on “humanitarian grounds”, reflecting its continued insistence that he was not engaged in espionage work.
