Havana Talks Will Start Thaw of U.S.-Cuba Relations
Open travel between the U.S. and Havana. Using American credit cards to pay for hotel stays in Cuba. Foreign diplomats able to travel beyond their host cities. Internet connections and freedom of speech.
A host of issues — untouched by officials in either the U.S. or Cuba for decades — will suddenly be on the table this week during rare high-level chats in Havana between the two former foes.
When U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson, the top U.S. diplomat for Latin America, sits down to talks with her Cuban counterpart in Havana, it will mark the first time a senior U.S. official has done so in at least three decades. Twice-yearly meetings on migration between U.S. and Cuban officials are typically attended by lesser-ranked State Department officials.