The New York Times Assesses Course of Cuba-U.S.A. Relations

HAVANA, Cuba, Apr 7 (acn) The Summit of the Americas in Panama will be an opportunity to verify the challenges of the new course of relations between Cuba and the United States, points out on Tuesday an editorial of The New York Times.

Presidents Raul Castro, Barack Obama and another 33 heads of state of the region will meet in Panama this week and will be able to assess the policy of the White House towards the Caribbean island, which although it's developing, has brought changes on expectations with regard to the future of the island in world economy, adds the text, the Prensa Latina news agency reported.
However, it will take several years to eliminate the sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Cuba for more than five decades because these punitive actions are codified in laws passed by Congress, says the Times.
Although the governments of Havana and Washington have yet to fully reestablish diplomatic relations, some concrete steps both sides have taken are promising.
In this regard, White House officials and executives of U.S. companies recently met with their counterparts in Cuba to explore how US companies can help improve the infrastructure of communications in the Caribbean nation, adds the publication.
The editorial recalls that a recent survey conducted by the firm Bendixen & Amandi International showed that 51 percent of Cuban-Americans approve the decision of initiating a process of normalization of relations with Cuba, seven points more as compared to a similar consultation made in December, 2014.
Delegations of the United States and Cuba carried out between January and March several rounds of talks after the decision of resuming diplomatic bonds announced on December 17 by presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro.
The most recent meeting took place on March 31 between representatives of the two countries at the headquarters of the State Department in Washington, where they tackled concerns and methodological aspects aimed at advancing in the debate on human rights, which was proposed by the island.
The economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on Cuba for over 50 years and the permanence of Cuba on the unilateral list of the State Department of nations sponsoring terrorism constitute, according to Cuban authorities, some of the main obstacles towards the normalization of bilateral relations.