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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
The
Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José
Miguel Insulza, today welcomed the “historic announcement” made by the
Presidents of Cuba and the United States, Raúl Castro and Barack Obama,
of the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries, as
well as the re-opening of embassies in Washington and Havana, the
lifting of certain commercial restrictions and the beginning of new
paths for cooperation on issues of mutual interest, among other
measures.
The OAS leader congratulated President Barack Obama “for having
taken these historic steps, as necessary as they are courageous, to
restore diplomatic relations broken off in 1961.” “This is a decision of
great vision on both sides, because this conflict, which has
significant negative implications for citizens of both countries, had
stagnated politically for too long,” said the Secretary General.
The leader of the multilateral Organization said, “the measures
announced today open a path to normalization from which there is no
return," and asked the United States Congress to "take the necessary
legislative measures to lift the embargo against Cuba, which remains in
force." "President Obama has been clear about the need to change a
policy that produced neither benefits nor results for 50 years, and only
complicated the lives of millions of citizens. We hope that Congress
understands this as well."
Secretary General Insulza recalled the decision of the OAS,
adopted unanimously by all member states, to rescind the suspension of
Cuba as an active member of the Organization, adopted at the General
Assembly in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, in 2009, and described the
resolution as "an early step to bring the Caribbean nation closer to the
community of countries that make up the OAS." Likewise, he expressed
his hope that the expectations for the success of the forthcoming
Seventh Summit of the Americas in Panama are fully met.
The head of the OAS expressed his happiness at the release of Alan
Gross, as well as Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino and Antonio
Guerrero, saying that their imprisonment "was the product of a past that
should not return."
Secretary General Insulza also praised "the role of the
international community in facilitating talks between Washington and
Havana" and urged both governments "to continue to rely on their
neighbors and friends to continue reaching agreements leading to full
normalization of contacts between two key countries of these, our
Americas."
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