December 9: USA officials say Cuba has handed over the first fugitive wanted by the United States since the diplomatic thaw.
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Among president Barack Obama’s regulatory changes this year was one permitting such travel to Cuba without specific Treasury Department permission.
“This is the year for laying down the foundation blocks”, said Pedro Freyre, Chair of International Practice at the Miami-based Akerman law firm, which has been working with large USA corporations interested in doing business with Cuba.
The return of commercial flights could see numbers of U.S. tourists to Cuba increase by thousands a day, putting strain on the island’s tourist infrastructure – hotels and hostels in the country are already booked months ahead.
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. Cuba wants the U.S.to lift its economic embargo and pay reparations, which the Castro regime says top $120 billion.
“We continue to have differences with the Cuban government, but we raise those issues directly, and we will always stand for human rights and the universal values that we support around the globe”, he said.
John Gronbeck-Tedesco, assistant professor of American Studies at Ramapo College in New Jersey, believes the Obama administration is doing its part to clear the way towards reconciliation, and says the talks held so far have calmed the “anti-normalisation rhetoric”.
Despite the relief in tensions, the United States continues to maintain a trade embargo on Cuba mandated by the US Congress.
One year ago this week, Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro announced that their countries were restoring diplomatic ties, opening the door for better baseball relations between the countries.
And following today’s announcement, American Airlines plans to submit a U.S.-Cuba service proposal to the U.S. Department of Transportation with the hope of introducing scheduled service soon in 2016.
The Havana Sugar Kings, a Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, played in the US minor leagues from 1954-60.
The US reopened its embassy in Havana in August after a 54-year absence.
That’s one of the first concrete details to emerge from the new U.S.-Cuba agreement that will allow airlines to add regular passenger service between the nations. These legacy routes may be subject to claims by the airlines who have acquired their rights through merger or purchase of other airlines during the last 50 years.
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Speaking at a news conference in Havana, Cuba’s Director of US Affairs Josefina Vidal told reporters that the two countries were close to reaching a preliminary agreement.
