Cuban Foreign Ministry and US State Department Hold Talks

Havana, Nov 9 (ACN) The Cuban Foreign Ministry and the US Department of State addressed consular issues during talks on Wednesday in Havana.

Deputy foreign minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio met here with Rena Bitter Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs at the US State Department and Ur Mendoza Jaddou, director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services at the State Department.

The Cuban deputy foreign minister reiterated the importance of the full resumption of consular and migration services at the US embassy in Havana, including the processing of non-immigrant visas.

Fernandez de Cossio also confirmed Cuba’s willingness to contribute necessary steps towards the full operation of migration and consular services at the diplomatic mission.

Under the former Donald Trump administration, the US embassy here reduced its personnel to the minimum in September 2017 on the pretext of sonic attacks and health incidents against the US diplomats.

The decision forced Cubans to travel to third countries to apply for US visas over the past five years. In May 2022, the mission announced the limited resumption of immigrant visa processing.