“The day that the president of the United States decides to visit Cuba, he will be welcome”, said Josefina Vidal, director of US affairs in the Cuban foreign ministry, according to Reuters”.
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The deal, the result of months of negotiations, paves the way for USA airlines to sell flights to Cuba directly from their websites and for greater tourism and business on the communist-ruled island.
Right now, American and Cuban travelers can only fly on charter flights that can be hard to book.
The United States and Cuba publicly say they’re delighted with the state of diplomatic relations a year after Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro declared the end to more than 50 years of official hostility. The move to announce the start of commercial flights is the latest in a series of steps taken to cool off tensions between the two countries. Total advance sales in the United States and Canada now stand at more than $100 million.
US law continues to bar Americans from traveling to the island purely as tourists, but they can do so if they fall under 12 special categories, including humanitarian, religious and educational trips, and “people-to-people” trips that encourage communication between USA and Cuban citizens.
Sprint and Verizon have signed roaming deals with Cuba’s state telecommunications company that benefit a small class of American travelers.
Under the deal, airlines from both countries will be able to make commercial agreements such as sharing flight codes and leasing planes to each other, it said.
“Interest in Cuba has reached levels not seen for a generation”, said Scott Laurence, senior vice president airline planning, JetBlue.
The deal has been in the works throughout long-running talks in Washington and would allow for US airlines to negotiate with the Cuban government for routes to the island.
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Obama wants Congress to lift the economic embargo on Cuba. It was also not yet clear how many US flights will be allowed into Cuba. Among Obama’s regulatory changes this year was one permitting such travel to Cuba without specific Treasury Department permission.
