Castro and President Obama last spoke by phone about a week ago ahead of Pope Francis’ trip to Cuba and the U.S. The assembly has voted each year since 1982 to approve a resolution calling on the United States to lift the embargo. “This would help us to continue increasing the number of women in decision-making positions in the government, just to mention a few aspects”. The first face-to-face meeting took place in April at the Summit of the Americas in Panama City.
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On Monday he will address the plenary of the General Assembly, the first time in 15 years that a Cuban leader addresses the forum. On Sunday night, he is expected to speak at the Democratic National Conference LGBT gala.
Obama also mentioned his administration’s support for human rights, a topic that many people who oppose the renewed diplomatic relations with Cuba bring up often. The flow of people from Europe, Africa, the United States and elsewhere continued unabated.
Normalization of relations between Cuba and the United States will only occur when an economic blockade against the Caribbean country is lifted. And rather than any negotiation with Iran, it may be the Cuba precedent that is more clearly instructive of the political strategy accompanying Obama’s use of his executive powers in the context of divided government and acute partisan polarization in Washington. And while Castro is impatient with how slowly policy changes happen in D.C., the U.S.is equally frustrated by how slowly Cuba is moving.
Castro, in his Monday remarks, called for the U.S.to end the embargo and return Guantanamo – as well as ” the cessation of radio and TV broadcasts, and of subversion and destabilization programs against the island”.
“What this story shows is that while Raúl Castro shakes hands with the world in his historic visit to the United States of America, things have hardly changed in Cuba, where people are still being thrown in jail exclusively for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression”.
The two men and their delegations met on the sidelines of the annual United Nations General Assembly.
But sanctions can only be removed entirely by Congress where Republican leaders are reported to be furious that the Obama administration is considering abstaining from a vote in the United Nations general assembly condemning the embargo against Cuba.
But there are also sceptics about the rapprochement in Havana, notably Mr Castro’s iconic predecessor and brother Fidel Castro, who has warned his compatriots not to trust American generosity.
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Castro railed against the Cold-War-era blockade and other elements of USA foreign policy during his speech, saying its removal was a crucial step to normalizing relations between the two countries.
