Cuba, US say third round of diplomatic negotiations ends

Cuba, US say third round of diplomatic negotiations ends
BY MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN ASSOCIATED PRESS
03/17/2015 12:08 PM 03/17/2015 12:08 PM

HAVANA
A third round of U.S.-Cuban negotiations over the restoration of full
diplomatic relations ended after a day of talks, Cuban and U.S.
officials said Tuesday. They provided no details on whether progress was
made toward a deal on reopening embassies in Washington and Havana.

The two countries have been trying to strike an agreement on embassies
before presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro attend the Summit of the
Americas in Panama on April 10-11.

Cuba's Ministry of Foreign Relations said the talks took place "in a
professional atmosphere" and "the two delegations agreed to maintain
communication in the future as part of this process."

Jeff Rathke, a U.S. State Department spokesman, said "the discussion was
positive and constructive and was held in an atmosphere of mutual respect."

Neither side said Tuesday whether they had resolved any of the obstacles
to reopening embassies in Havana and Washington. The State Department
said Friday that topics being discussed at the latest round would
include lifting caps on Cuban and U.S. diplomatic staff and limits on
their movements outside Havana and Washington.

The secretive atmosphere was striking in contrast to previous
discussions about U.S.-Cuban detente. After two earlier meetings, U.S.
and Cuban diplomats engaged in wide-ranging exchanges with reporters
from both nations that were broadcast on Cuban state television to rapt
audiences on the island.

Cuban state media dedicated virtually no coverage to Monday's talks,
focusing instead on statements of support for Venezuela in the face of
new sanctions by the United States, which declared last week that the
South American country was a threat to U.S. national security.

Cuban state television showed Raul Castro arriving in Caracas, Venezuela
for a Tuesday summit of left-leaning Latin American countries organized
in response to the American sanctions. Cuban state newspapers published
a relatively rare and strongly worded front-page letter from former
president Fidel Castro, declaring that Venezuela, Cuba's closest ally,"
will never accept threats and impositions" from the United States.

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Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report.

Source: Cuba, US say third round of diplomatic negotiations ends | Miami
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