The White House said on Friday that Kerry’s decision would not affect Obama’s visit, and that Kerry would travel to Cuba with the president.
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Concerns over the country’s human rights record caused Kerry not to go forward with the plans to visit the island ahead of President Obama’s March 21 trip. A US official said the State Department and Cuban counterparts couldn’t reach “common agreement” on aspects of Kerry’s trip, including his ability to speak with dissidents. Kerry had flown to Havana in August to reopen the U.S. Embassy and was set to visit Cuba in the coming days. The official also cited logistical challenges for the still fledgling U.S. Embassy in planning back-to-back trips.
John Bailey, Travel Time’s co-owner, suggested the trip to the YCEA, York County’s chamber of commerce and largest business organization, so visitors could see Cuba as it has been for the past half-century-plus.
American Airlines has applied for permission to fly nonstop from Charlotte to Havana, in a landmark move as air carriers and the US government look to re-establish ties with Cuba.
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Kerry planned to visit Cuba to prepare for Obama’s trip and “have a human rights dialogue”, he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on February 24, but his plans were officially cancelled Thursday when arrangements could not be made. But he added: “The president has every expectation to meet with dissidents down there”. “I hope that President Obama sees the folly of his visit, which legitimizes the oppressive Castro regime, and cancels his visit, which only gives the oppressors the green light to continue repressing those who seek their fundamental human rights”. In January, 1,414 political dissidents were detained with 56 of them beaten, according to Elizardo Sanchez, head of the opposition Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation.
