The Cuban flag was raised at the US State Department yesterday, in a historic gesture to mark renewed diplomatic ties between Havana and Washington as embassies were re-established in their respective capitals.Diplomatic relations officially resumed at the stroke of midnight and the Cuban banner was hoisted a few hours later, in a move towards burying decades of enmity between the Cold War foes and seeking to normalise relations.
A foreign policy legacy for US President Barack Obama, the historic turnaround between two bitter adversaries has come about at breakneck pace, in just a matter of months since the two sides agreed to bury the hatchet and work together as equals.
The shift came after Washington acknowledged its policy of trying to affect change in tightly controlled communist Cuba through isolation and trade restrictions had failed, and that engaging Havana directly was a better way to nudge it towards democracy and prosperity.
At about 4am the Cuban banner took its place among a row of flags from around the world adorning the State Department’s imposing marble entrance in the US capital as workers hoisted it up a newly installed flag pole.
The banner took its place between the flags of Croatia to the left and Cyprus to the right. And for the first time since 1961, the standard – with a white star inside a red triangle against white and blue stripes – will also fly over Havana’s newly upgraded embassy in Washington, just a stone’s throw from the White House.
In yet another historic gesture, US Secretary of State John Kerry was to formally receive his Cuban counterpart Bruno Rodriguez for talks yesterday, before holding a joint press conference later. Rodriguez was also to preside over a ceremony to mark the upgrading of the Cuban interests section to a full embassy.
The rapprochement was announced on December 17, as Obama and his Cuban counterpart Raul Castro agreed to end their countries’ estrangement and put them on track towards a full normalisation of ties.
After a series of negotiations in Havana and Washington, the restoration of diplomatic relations has come about just seven months later. But both nations have cautioned that this is only a beginning, warning that overcoming decades of very bad blood was not easy.
There are “issues that we don’t see eye-to-eye on”, State Department spokesman John Kirby admitted on Friday.
The US “wants to move beyond a Cold War-era approach to one of constructive engagement as a way to support and empower the Cuban people”, analyst Ted Piccone from the Brookings Institution said
.
“Cuba needs the US as an economic engine for its troubled economy and hopes to attract new foreign investment and human capital to update its socialist model, but without undergoing political reform.
“Building confidence and trust will be critical to the ability to move forward,” he said.
One of the biggest areas of contention remains human rights, with Washington pressing for an improvement in freedoms of expression, religion and the press in the Caribbean island nation.
Some Republicans have been sharply critical of what they see as US haste to cosy up with Cuba.
Senator and 2016 presidential hopeful Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, vowed to end diplomatic ties with an “anti-American communist tyranny”.
“This recognition somehow sends a message to dissidents and others around the world that the United States accepts the Cuban form of government today as a legitimate form,” he said.
Another tough issue is compensation for American property seized after the 1959 Cuban revolution. Some 5911 lawsuits have been opened in the United States seeking an estimated $7- to $8-billion (R87- to R99.5-billion.
On Havana’s side, Castro has urged Obama to use his executive powers to “dismantle” the economic embargo in place since 1960, calling it the main stumbling block towards normalisation.
Washington also wants to ensure the return of several American fugitives wanted in the US.
Top of the list is a former member of the violent Black Panther revolutionary group, Joanne Chesimard, wanted for the killing of a New Jersey policeman in 1973 and hiding in Cuba since 1984.
The US interests section in Havana will also be upgraded to a full embassy, but with little fanfare as diplomats there await the arrival of Kerry, who is due to officially hoist the Stars and Stripes over the building in the coming weeks.
Tough negotiations eased one stumbling block, top US diplomat for Latin America Roberta Jacobson said, after insisting that American diplomats be allowed to operate freely across Cuba. “The security presence outside the intersection has already been reduced ... such that we hope people will not feel nearly the same kind of presence or threat,” she said.
US diplomats will still have to provide notification of their travel, but will no longer have to seek permission.