The largest U.S. congressional delegation in years ended talks here Sunday without a commitment from Cuban authorities to release political prisoners or make other concessions that could bolster those seeking to ease U.S. sanctions against Cuba.
Cuban officials were amenable to discussing with the U.S. such issues as immigration and anti-narcotics cooperation, but they refused to concede any changes in internal policy as a way to further talks.
“The Cuban officials made every attempt to convince us [and] to demonstrate that there is no change of policy in Cuba,” said Rep. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), one of 10 American lawmakers visiting Cuba.
“They made a very strong effort to convince us that the ball was in the United States’ court. They’ve done all they were going to do.”
Moran is among four Republicans of a bipartisan delegation visiting Cuba that, as a whole, supports easing the four-decade U.S. trade embargo against Cuba. During three days of talks, delegation members met with several top Cuban officials but not with the ailing Fidel Castro or his younger brother, Defense Minister Raul Castro, who is acting as Cuba’s interim leader.
Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), the head of the U.S. delegation, said Cuban officials told the group that Fidel Castro does not have cancer and his condition “is not terminal.”
“The party line is that Fidel is coming back,” said Jane Harman (D-Calif.), another delegation member.
But Havana-based diplomats and many Cubans believe the 80-year-old Castro is dying and will likely never return to power.
Castro has not been seen in public since July 26, and Cuban authorities have released few details about his illness.
The visit by the U.S. delegation comes as President Bush has intensified sanctions against Cuba in an effort to topple the island’s one-party government.
Cuba also is going through a period of uncertainty as Fidel Castro steps aside after 47 years in power and Raul Castro tries to consolidate his authority in an effort to sustain Cuba’s communist system.
The Democratic takeover of Congress coupled with Fidel Castro’s illness have raised hopes among embargo opponents that the political dynamics have shifted in Washington and Havana.
Despite being rebuffed by Cuban officials, several delegation members expressed optimism that restrictions against Americans traveling to Cuba and other measures could be eased by the new Congress. They urged continued dialogue with Cuban officials as a way to ease tensions.
“It is time to change course,” Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) said in Havana. “The course we have been on for the last 48 years has not yielded any success.”
As interim president, Raul Castro has said he is willing to negotiate with the U.S. as long as it is on a fair and equal footing.
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But Thomas Shannon, the top U.S. official for Latin America, said the Bush administration has no interest in negotiating with Cuba until it moves toward democratic elections.
The U.S. lawmakers met with Cuban National Assembly President Ricardo Alarcon and Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque, along with Roman Catholic Cardinal Jaime Ortega and Michael Parmly, the top U.S. diplomat in Cuba.
A meeting with Raul Castro did not materialize.
“It would have been nice to meet with Raul,” Flake said. “It would have been a big signal that a new era had begun. They just weren’t ready for that.”
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