Blog
The Vatican says Pope Francis is considering adding a stop in Cuba to his U.S. trip in September.
Francis has been credited with having helped the United States and Cuba reach their historic rapprochement by writing to the leaders of both countries and having the Vatican host their delegations for the final negotiations.
The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, said Friday that Francis “is considering the idea of a Cuba leg” but that discussions with Cuba are at an early stage. He said it’s too early to say that a decision has been taken or that there is an operational plan under way.
Publish by The Wall Street Journal
The Brazilian civil aviation regulatory agency (ANAC) has authorized GOL to operate three weekly flights between Sao Paulo and Havana.
Gol, Brazil’s second-largest airline, concentrates its international flights in the Southern Cone but it also serves routes to the Caribbean like- Barbados, Aruba, Trinidad Tobago, and Santo Domingo.
Cuba will host for the first time the International Symposium on Trade and Service Development, May 19-22 in Havana.
The forum, being organized by the Cuban Domestic Trade Ministry, will address the unfolding of domestic trade amidst ongoing economic changes and will include roundtables, discussion panels, and key-note lectures by representatives of local and international participants.
Some of the topics on the forum´s agenda include logistics, design and management of warehouses, non-state service modalities in Cuba, and cooperatives in the non-agriculture sector.
Observers say that the forum, to take place at Havana´s Conventions Center, will allow the exchange of expertise and the debate of ideas related to the sustainable development of wholesale and retail market operations.
Publish by ACN
The White House confirmed that Obama had notified Congress of his intention to remove Cuba from the list, reversing a designation that has been in place since 1982.
The White House now believes Cuba does not support rebel groups such as Farc or ETA.
The Cuban government recognised the fair decision made by the president of the United States to eliminate Cuba from a list.
“I apologize to Obama for expressing myself so emotionally”. “President Obama has no responsibility for this. There were 10 presidents before him; all have a debt to us, but not President Obama. . . . I have read his books — parts of them — and I admire his life.” Raul Castro said.
With regard to remove Cuba from the black list, Obama said. “I’ve been on the road,”. “I want to make sure I have a chance to read it and study it before we announce it publicly.”
US President Barack Obama has described the historic thaw in US-Cuba relations as a “turning point”.
Mr Obama was addressing 34 other regional leaders, including Cuba’s President Raul Castro, at the Summit of the Americas in Panama.
The US president is due to meet Mr Castro on the sidelines of the summit.
It will be the first top-level negotiations between their countries in more than 50 years and their first formal meeting since the thaw began.
Addressing the same plenary in Panama City on the summit’s second day, Mr Castro called for the decades-long economic blockade on Cuba to be lifted.
He also described Mr Obama as an “honest man” after a lengthy speech largely taken up with the history of US-Cuba relations.
“When I talk about the revolution, the passion oozes out of me,” the Cuban leader said. “I have to ask President Obama for forgiveness. He is not responsible for the things which happened before his time.”
Earlier, Mr Obama told fellow leaders: “This shift in US policy represents a turning point for our entire region.
“The fact that President Castro and I are both sitting here today marks a historic occasion,” he said, while admitting there were still significant differences.
Published by BBC