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It looks like the US is finally restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba...

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout: Debate & Discussion' started by geeimsobored, Dec 17, 2014.

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geeimsobored Contributing Member

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Looks like Obama negotiated a secret deal that is culminating in diplomatic relations with Cuba. The embargo is still technically in effect since that's a series of laws passed by Congress but I'm guessing there will be momentum to end that as well soon enough.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/18/world/americas/us-cuba-relations.html

WASHINGTON — The United States will restore full diplomatic relations with Cuba and open an embassy in Havana for the first time in more than a half century after the release of an American contractor held in prison for five years, American officials said Wednesday. About freaking time.

In a deal negotiated during 18 months of secret talks hosted largely by Canada and encouraged by Pope Francis who hosted a final culminating meeting at the Vatican, President Obama and President Raul Castro of Cuba agreed in a telephone call to put aside decades of hostility to find a new relationship between the island nation just 90 minutes off the American coast.

The contractor, Alan Gross, boarded an American government plane bound for the United States on Wednesday morning and the United States sent back three Cuban spies who have been in an American prison since 1981. American officials said the Cuban spies were swapped for a United States intelligence agent who has been in a Cuban prison for nearly 20 years and said Mr. Gross was not technically part of the swap but released separately on “humanitarian grounds.”

In addition, the United States will ease restrictions on remittances, travel and banking relations and Cuba will release 53 Cuban prisoners identified as political prisoners by the United States government. Although the decades-old American embargo on Cuba will remain in place for now, the administration signaled that it would welcome a move by Congress to ease or lift it should lawmakers choose to.

“Today, the United States is taking historic steps to chart a new course in our relations with Cuba and to further engage and empower the Cuban people,” the White House said in a written statement.

President Obama plans to make a televised statement from the White House at noon to discuss the breakthrough, which could shape his legacy heading into his final two years in office.

Mr. Gross’s sister, Bonnie Rubinstein, was “beyond ecstatic” at the news of his release, according to her husband, Harold. “We are extremely grateful that he’s on his way home,” Mr. Rubinstein said by telephone from Dallas. “It’s been a long ordeal.”

Mr. Obama spoke with Mr. Castro by telephone on Tuesday to finalize the agreement in a call that lasted more than 45 minutes, the first direct contact between the leaders of the two countries in more than 50 years, American officials said.

American officials said Mr. Gross’s release was made on humanitarian grounds and not directly part of a prisoner swap. Instead, the United States traded the three Cuban spies for what officials called an “intelligence asset” who has been imprisoned in Cuba for 20 years.

Diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba were severed in January 1961 after the rise of Fidel Castro and his Communist government. Mr. Obama has instructed Secretary of State John Kerry to immediately initiate discussions with Cuba about reestablishing diplomatic relations and to begin the process of removing Cuba from the list of states that sponsor terrorism, which it has been on since 1982, the White House said.

Officials said they would re-establish an embassy in Havana and carry out high-level exchanges and visits between the two governments within months. Mr. Obama will send an assistant secretary of state to Havana next month to lead an American delegation to the next round of talks on Cuban-American migration. The United States will also begin working with Cuba on issues like counternarcotics, environmental protection and human trafficking.

The United States will also ease travel restrictions across all 12 categories currently envisioned under limited circumstances under American law, including family visits, official visits and journalistic, professional, educational and religious activities, public performances, officials said. Ordinary tourism, however, will remain prohibited.

Mr. Obama will also allow greater banking ties and raise the level of remittances allowed to be sent to Cuban nationals to $2,000 every three months from the current limit of $500. Intermediaries forwarding remittances will no longer require a specific license from the government. American travelers will also be allowed to import up to $400 worth of goods from Cuba, including up to $100 in tobacco and alcohol products.

“This is being done because we believe the policy of the past has not worked and we believe the best way to bring democracy and prosperity to Cuba is through a different kind of policy,” a senior administration official told reporters on a conference call under White House ground rules that did not permit the official to be identified.

But the official said the shift would not diminish the American focus on human rights in Cuba. “Our emphasis on human rights will be just as strong and we believe more effective under this policy,” the official said. “We will engage directly with the Cuban government on human rights.”

Mr. Gross’s health has been failing. He has reportedly lost more than 100 pounds in prison and is losing vision in his right eye. He went on a nine-day hunger strike in April. After turning 65 in May, he told relatives that he might try to kill himself if not released soon.

Three members of Congress were on the plane that picked up Mr. Gross in Cuba on Wednesday and accompanied him back to the United States, officials said: Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont, Senator Jeff Flake, Republican of Arizona, and Representative Chris Van Hollen, Democrat of Maryland.

Other Democratic and Republican lawmakers were sharply critical of the deal. “Let’s be clear, this was not a ‘humanitarian’ act by the Castro regime. It was a swap of convicted spies for an innocent American,” said Senator Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey and the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. “President Obama’s actions have vindicated the brutal behavior of the Cuban government.”

Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, considered a prospect for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, told The Associated Press: “This is going to do absolutely nothing to further human rights and democracy in Cuba. But it potentially goes a long way in providing the economic lift that the Castro regime needs to become permanent fixtures in Cuba for generations to come.”

Mr. Gross was in Cuba to deliver satellite telephone equipment that was capable of cloaking connections to the Internet when he was arrested in 2009. The Cuban authorities, who tightly control access to the Internet in their country, initially said he was a spy, and a court there convicted him of bringing in the devices without a permit as part of a subversive plot to “destroy the revolution.”

Mr. Gross’s case drew increasing attention as his health deteriorated. He grew despondent and talked of suicide, and his wife, Judy Gross, and other supporters made urgent pleas for his release, but off-and-on diplomatic talks seemed to go nowhere.

Cuba has often raised the case of three of its spies serving federal prison time in Florida, saying they had been prosecuted unjustly and urging that they be released on humanitarian grounds. State Department officials insisted that the cases were not comparable and that Mr. Gross was not an intelligence agent.

Mr. Gross worked for Development Alternatives, of Bethesda, Md., and had traveled to more than 50 countries as an international development worker. The company had a $6 million contract with the United States Agency for International Development to distribute equipment that could get around Cuba’s Internet blockade, and Mr. Gross had made four previous trips to Cuba in 2009.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, the former New Mexico governor and cabinet secretary Bill Richardson and several members of Congress appealed for Mr. Gross’s release, along with Jewish advocacy groups in the United States.

After visiting Mr. Gross in November, Senator Jeff Flake, Republican of Arizona and a longtime advocate of loosening the 50-year-old American trade embargo with Cuba, said he was optimistic that the case would be resolved.

American lawmakers who have drawn attention to Mr. Gross’s case celebrated his departure from Cuba. “Today, news of Alan’s release brings great relief to his loved ones and to every American who has called for his freedom,” said Senator Jerry Moran, Republican of Kansas. “I admire Alan’s strength and that of his wife Judy, who has worked tirelessly for years to free Alan and reunite her family.”

The American government has spent $264 million over the last 18 years, much of it through the development agency, in an effort to spur democratic change in Cuba. The agency said in November that it would cease the kinds of operations that Mr. Gross was involved in when he was arrested, as well as those, disclosed by The Associated Press, that allowed a contractor to set up a Twitter-like social network that hid its ties to the United States government.
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#1 geeimsobored, Dec 17, 2014
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REEKO_HTOWN I'm Rich Biiiiaaatch!

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Ah man. History in the making.

I'll be on my merry way to go buy me a car or two

#2 REEKO_HTOWN, Dec 17, 2014
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Welcome Cuba to the modern capitalist world.

#3 Mr. Clutch, Dec 17, 2014
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didn't he send a couple of ambassadors there a few years ago?

but seriously..I think this is a good move.

#4 DFWRocket, Dec 17, 2014
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Wow, this almost reads like fiction... I'm glad though, I've always wanted to visit Cuba.

#5 HR Dept, Dec 17, 2014
geeimsobored Contributing Member

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HR Dept said: ↑

Wow, this almost reads like fiction... I'm glad though, I've always wanted to visit Cuba.
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I feel the same way. Just totally out of left field. I need to get to Cuba before they replace all of the classic cars with modern stuff.

#6 geeimsobored, Dec 17, 2014
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HR Dept said: ↑

Wow, this almost reads like fiction... I'm glad though, I've always wanted to visit Cuba.
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Sadly, the article says that regular tourism is still going to be prohibited.

#7 GladiatoRowdy, Dec 17, 2014

REEKO_HTOWN I'm Rich Biiiiaaatch!

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GladiatoRowdy said: ↑

Sadly, the article says that regular tourism is still going to be prohibited.
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But import export won't be.

I'll just do what my cousin did and take a flight to Cuba via Mexico.

#8 REEKO_HTOWN, Dec 17, 2014
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GladiatoRowdy said: ↑

Sadly, the article says that regular tourism is still going to be prohibited.
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I caught that, but now it looks like there's a chance for that to change in my lifetime.

#9 HR Dept, Dec 17, 2014
geeimsobored Contributing Member

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GladiatoRowdy said: ↑

Sadly, the article says that regular tourism is still going to be prohibited.
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The travel ban is built into the laws that created the embargo. So Congress has to fix that one. However, the laws do allow for 12 specific exemptions. Obama has already expanded what constitutes a "cultural exchange" which is 1 of the 12 categories. I expect him to broaden what constitutes a legal tourist visit as part of this growth.

Part of the agreement legalizes bank transactions in Cuba (so debit and credit cards will now work) so I expect that expanded tourism will accompany that. I think he'll wait for Congress's response to this and if they do nothing, Obama will just continue to expand the definition of legal tourism to Cuba.

#10 geeimsobored, Dec 17, 2014
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But administration officials said the president would unveil executive actions to ease restrictions on trips by U.S. citizens to Cuba. Those travelers will also be able to buy Cuban goods for personal use, including up to $100 in alcohol or tobacco products, meaning that at least some Americans will be able to bring home some of the island's famous rum and iconic cigars.

link
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Apply for your passports, boys, we're going on a rum run.

#11 g1184, Dec 17, 2014
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geeimsobored said: ↑

Looks like Obama negotiated a secret deal that is culminating in diplomatic relations with Cuba. The embargo is still technically in effect since that's a series of laws passed by Congress but I'm guessing there will be momentum to end that as well soon enough.
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, huge momentum, that's why Obama waited till after the election to let his leftist freak flag fly.

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/227400-top-senate-dem-slams-obama-on-cuba

Sen. Robert Menendez (N.J.), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is slamming President Obama over his prisoner swap to release an American held in Cuba.

“President Obama's actions have vindicated the brutal behavior of the Cuban government," Menendez, known for his tough stance on Cuba, said in a statement.

"There is no equivalence between an international aid worker and convicted spies who were found guilty of conspiracy to commit espionage against our nation."
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#12 Commodore, Dec 17, 2014
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Commodore said: ↑

Oh yeah, huge momentum, that's why Obama waited till after the election to let his leftist freak flag fly.
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Because the old policy was working brilliantly.

This is more of a new generation vs old generation politician thing than left vs right. That's why people like Menendez are against it, while people like Jeff Flake are for it. Cuba politics has never been left vs right.

#13 Major, Dec 17, 2014

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glorious news.
are we just going to pretend that if cuba could offer what china offers, there would be no embargo act in the first place.

#14 conquistador#11, Dec 17, 2014
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I can't wait for the dozens of 60 year old Cubans in Miami to protest in the streets lol

#15 REEKO_HTOWN, Dec 17, 2014
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Also interesting to see that our resident libertarian would be opposed to additional freedom of trade and movement and removal of regulations. I guess when Obama does it, his principles go out the window.

#16 Major, Dec 17, 2014
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Love or hate Obama, this was the right move.

#17 Nook, Dec 17, 2014
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Obama getting **** down. **** this dysfunctional obstructionist congress.

#18 Teen Wolf, Dec 17, 2014

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Teen Wolf said: ↑

Obama getting **** down. **** this dysfunctional obstructionist congress.
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Getting **** done

#19 Teen Wolf, Dec 17, 2014
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Great news. Though entrusting the rollback of the embargo to this Congress (or the next one) doesn't fill me with confidence.

#20 JuanValdez, Dec 17, 2014

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