Cuban FM Receives U.S. Secretary of Agriculture

HAVANA, Cuba, Nov 16 (acn) Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez received Thomas Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture of the United States, who was on a working visit to Cuba since Wednesday.

At the headquarters of the Foreign Ministry on Friday, Rodriguez also greeted the members of the delegation that traveled to the island with Vilsack to know the potential and limitations of the island's agricultural sector and explore ways to promote bilateral trade.
Todd Batta, Assistant Secretary for Congressional Relations; Alexis Taylor, Deputy under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, and Democrat representatives for the states of Alabama, Oregon and Washington were also present at the meeting. Also representing Cuba was Josefina Vidal, director general the U.S. Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Minutes before the meeting with Bruno Rodríguez, the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture held an exchange with the national and foreign press about his agenda in Cuba, which ended on Saturday.
At the headquarters of the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Vilsack told reporters that he was committed to finding a way to eliminate the barriers limiting trade between the two nations.
According to the top official, he returns to Washington with a special interest in seeing what can be done in the short term to ease existing restrictions and boost a relationship from which consumers and producers of Cuba and the United States will benefit.
Vilsack stressed, as one of the first steps to be taken in the short term, the opening of an avenue of knowledge between the two markets, so we can build "brick by brick" a strong relationship, one that it works in two directions.
The agricultural sector can serve as a bridge in the process towards normalization of ties, he said, while underlining that upon his return he will find a way for hits Secretariat to have a greater presence in Cuba.
He expressed his impressions with the achievements of the Caribbean nation in plant protection and in the struggle against pests affecting crops, an aspect he's very much interested in cooperating, due to its impact on ensuring the quality of products that can be exported to the northern market.
He emphasized his interest in promoting deeper and more detailed exchanges with the Cuban Ministry of Agriculture in order to find together a path to a stronger relationship.
The agenda of the top U.S. official included a visit on Friday to the agricultural kiosks located on 19th and B streets, in Vedado neighborhood, where he found the variety of fruits and vegetables produced in the country, basically through the system of organic farms.
Before returning to the U.S. on Saturday he toured agricultural cooperatives in the provinces of Mayabeque and Artemisa.