In presence of the majority of Latin American leaders, the president of Cuba presented the demands of his country for a full restoration of ties with Washington.
“Can diplomatic relations be re-established before financial services cut off as a result of the financial blockade are restored to the Cuban Interests Section and its Consular Offices in Washington? How can the re-establishment of diplomatic relations be explained without rescinding Cuba from the List of States Sponsors of International Terrorism? “Asked Raúl Castro in San José, Costa Rica, during the Third Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).
He also said his government diplomats will ask their US counterparts compliance with the standards of the International Convention for Diplomatic and Consular Relations, before the establishment of an US embassy in Havana.
Castro added that normalization ¨ will not be possible while the blockade remains in effect; the territory illegally occupied by the Guantánamo Naval Base is not returned¨
The Cuban president presented these requirements before the 21 heads of state and government attending this summit. In April, these leaders will travel to Panama to participate in the Summit of Las Americas. Raul Castro was invited for the first time to participate in this event where Barack Obama will also be
Castro also made public his understanding on the purposes behind the new steps taken by the White House: “The spokespersons of the U.S. government have clearly stated that the methods are changing but not the objectives of their policy, and insisted in actions that interfere with our internal affairs, something we will not accept..”
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“The American counterparts should not pretend to relate with the Cuban society as if a sovereign government did not exist in the Island.” said Castro, who also described the recent US initiatives as ¨very limited¨
He added that ¨ President Barack Obama could use with determination his extensive executive powers to substantially modify the implementation of the blockade. This is something he can do even without Congressional approval.¨
Cuban diplomats affirm that the White House can ¨empty¨ the blockade using executive orders, leaving it as an ¨empty shell¨
Regarding the Americas Summit, the Cuban President said that ¨ the Cuban civil society will attend, and I hope there will be no restrictions against our country’s non-governmental organizations, which are not interested in any status at the OAS but are definitely recognized by the United Nations¨
Latin American presidents, like Brazil Dilma Rousseff and Colombia’s Juan Manuel Santos, mentioned the normalization of relations between Cuba and the United States in their speeches.
“We cannot be indifferent to a process of change within Cuba (…) It is time to overcome the paralysis which takes the ideological stubbornness and seek minimal consensus for this process of change comes to fruition, without blockade, for the well-being of the Cuban people, ” said Santos, who heads one of the Latin American governments that has better relations with the United States.
The normalization of relations between the governments of Havana and Washington is a topic of hemispheric interest. Countries like Brazil and Mexico are betting hard on the end to hostility on both sides of the Florida Straits.
