“President Obama has crossed a historic mark on US policy toward Cuba, beginning to align US diplomacy in Cuba with US democratic values and International Law. The road ahead will not be easy but a correct perception is key to the links between Cuba and the US “, Arturo Lopez-Levy, an expert on issues related to relations between Cuba and the United States , visiting lecturer at Mills College, Oakland, California, posted on his Facebook profile.
The also PhD candidate in Josef Korbel School of International Studies at Denver University said: “To Cuba it is an opportunity to relaunch the process of economic reform, political liberalization and openness with more vigor. For the United States, having the right understanding of Cuba ensures that the wrong image of Cuba as a threat not to derail US strategy toward Latin America in the 21st Century “.
Both nations today, after half a century of tensions, gave a twist to the course in their political projections. Diplomatic relations will be reestablished and a US embassy will be opened on the island, US President Barack Obama said in his speech. Although blockade sanctions have been converted into law, Obama can modify its application in use of his executive powers, Cuban President Raul Castro suggested .
The starting point was a historic negotiation: Alan Gross, American citizen sentenced to 15 years in prison on Cuba, was released along with another prisoner of value to the US government; in exchange the Obama administration returned to their homeland to three of the five Cuban agents arrested in 1998 who remained in prisons of that country. A 45-minute phone call between the two presidents sealed the bilateral agreement.
The Doctor of Economic Sciences Pavel Vidal, exclusively for OnCuba, praised the change this way: “Viewed from an economic perspective, the change in US policy towards Cuba and the first announced measures will not only produce a turnaround in imports from US and the arrival of remittances and tourists, but send a very favorable sign to the international community about Cuban economic prospects. If indeed Cuba is excluded from the list of countries sponsoring terrorism, costs and risks of having links to the Cuban economy will be greatly reduced . ”
“This is the best place where starting the new law for foreign investment, and to some extent, it facilitates the way to eliminate dual currency. Private businesses will have greater financing options through remittances and for importing inputs, plus they will get a boost by the demand associated with tourism. With improved economic performance, the consensus around reform will increase. There are many reasons to be more optimistic about the economic future of our country, “the specialist in monetary policy and economic growth said.
Figures of Cuban culture also gave their views on the public debate generated by those news announced by the presidents of both countries at noon December 17, 2014.
Gerardo Alfonso, pillar of the new Cuban trova, told OnCuba this is a historic day for both nations, because in 50 years such a positive situation in diplomatic relations had never occurred. “The day in which Gerardo, Ramón and Antonio returned was unthinkable, I am very happy about it,” he said and expressed hope for a diplomatic exchange with positive economic, social and cultural consequences.
” Hostilities and chaos are over. This will also allow, through art, to heal our wounds, clean us as a society, and improve, both peoples, as human beings, “he added.
Fernando Pérez, film director with three side awards in the recently concluded International Festival of New Latin American Cinema with the film ¨La pared de las palabras¨, said in reference to the long history of antagonism between the two countries: “It’s exciting news, eagerly awaited, and it means only one step to move forward and overcome a whole history ….”
In statements to Prensa Latina news agency, the essayist Graziela Pogolotti estimated that normalization of relations marks a milestone and “it undoubtedly opens a dialog possibility in other terms, although each party defends its position, this day marks a turning point for both to analyze their bilateral agenda.”
The singer Silvio Rodriguez in his blog Segunda Cita ( Second Date) published: “It is clear that the governments of Cuba and the United States, in an unprecedented joint action in more than half a century, have managed to agree on substantive aspects of the dispute between us, what makes possible an prisoners exchange which undoubtedly will open doors to many other things. I vote for this attitude of dialogue to continue on both sides, so that we can live in peace as neighbors, and I wish that mutual respect and admiration from people to people to always weigh more than the differences that we undoubtedly also have. “
