The Associated Press reports American officials say the United States will normalize full diplomatic relations with Cuba and open an embassy in Havana, ending a half-century standoff that began at the height of the Cold War.
The news follows Cuba’s release of U.S. citizen Alan Gross, reported earlier here on Matzav.com, after five years in captivity. The U.S. released three alleged Cuban spies in return. The exchange is a result of a year of secret backtalks between the U.S. and Cuba. Raul Castro and President Obama will both speak, separately, around noon Eastern time. ABC News reports the White House indicates Obama and Castro are prepared to talk about everything from lifting travel restrictions to ending the U.S. embargo of Cuba that began under Dwight D. Eisenhower.
“We are charting a new course toward Cuba,” a senior administration official told CNN. “The President understood the time was right to attempt a new approach, both because of the beginnings of changes in Cuba and because of the impediment this was causing for our regional policy.” Read more at ABC News.
{Andy Heller-Matzav.com Newscenter}
Baruch Hashem for releasing Alan Gross. A true miracle of Hanukah. Let us all be thankful to Hashem for all his miracles.
The ending of the embargo and the normalization of relations is long overdue. The embargo clearly had not worked to make Cuba democratic and that has been clear for decades. But already politicians are pandering to the extremists who want to continue doing what isn’t working.