Cuba-US Relations Could Normalize, With Embassies Reopening, as Early as July - Report
Next month, President Barack Obama is expected to announce an agreement with Cuba that will allow each country to reopen embassies in the other's capital.
According to Reuters, the former Cold War foes are working to finalize the deal by the first week in July, marking another huge step in the U.S. effort to normalize relations with the Communist country.
Once the deal is in place, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to visit Havana and attend a flag-raising ceremony to upgrade the U.S. interests section to a full-scale embassy, sources told Reuters.
The sources added the Obama administration hoped to send Congress notice within the next two weeks of its intention to reopen the Havana embassy. The State Department is mandated by law to notify Congress at least 15 days before taking action.
The Cuban government is also expected to issue its own announcement about restoring ties with the U.S., and opening a U.S. embassy in its capital city of Havana.
The announcement will come nearly seven months after President Obama first announced in December that the U.S. and Cuba have begun working to restore their diplomatic ties after a 54-year frozen relationship.
Last month, the U.S. removed Cuba from the U.S. terrorism list after a thorough review determined the Cuban government had not provided assistance to terrorist organizations in the preceding six months and the country agreed not to do so moving forward.
Although congressional Republicans have objected to the decision, arguing that Cuba still harbors known terrorists and U.S. fugitives, State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke declared that those issues were not pertinent enough to keep Cuba from being removed from the list.
"While the United States has significant concerns and disagreements with a wide range of Cuba's policies and actions, these fall outside the criteria relevant to the rescission of a State Sponsor of Terrorism designation," Rathke said on Friday in a statement.
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