HAVANA, (Reuters) – The latest talks between Cuba and the United States on restoring diplomatic relations concluded after one day, Cuba said yesterday without disclosing what may have been agreed.
Assistant U.S. Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson met in Havana on Monday with Josefina Vidal, the Cuban foreign ministry’s chief of U.S. affairs, in what had been described as open-ended talks that could last a few days.
The talks ended after just one day, Cuba’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
“At the end of the meeting, which took place in a professional climate, the two delegations agreed to maintain communication in the future as part of this process,” the statement said.
The former Cold War rivals severed diplomatic ties in 1961 and after decades of animosity announced in December they would seek to normalize relations.
Jacobson and Vidal led their respective delegations with intense media coverage in Havana in January and in Washington in February, but reporters were excluded this time.
U.S. officials had described Monday’s session as private discussions that did not qualify as a third round of negotiations.
Before agreeing to restore ties, Cuba wants to be removed from the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism and also to find a bank willing to handle transactions for its diplomatic post in Washington.
For its part, the United States wants to increase staff at its mission in Havana and have unrestricted travel for its diplomats on the island.
