Caribbean & Central America - July 2015 (ISSN 1741-4458)

Following US President Barack Obama’s historic announcement that the US and Cuba will finally restore full diplomatic relations on 20 July, the US Secretary of State, John Kerry, was due to go toHavana for an official flag-raising ceremony to celebrate the promotion of the US interests section to full embassy status.

It now seems that Kerry’s trip may be delayed, in part owing to his busy schedule, but also due to some final ‘ironing out’ of details in the talks with the Cuban government about operating conditions for the new embassy. It also appears that President Obama will not, for now, move to appoint a new ambassador, in order to avoid a row with the Republican-controlled US Senate, where leading senators have vowed to block any nominee for the Cuban post.

As per a new State Department fact sheet on the re-establishment of diplomatic relations with Cuba, released on 6 July, the current Chief of Mission, Jeffrey DeLaurentis, “will be the senior-most official in the new embassy and will serve as Charge d’Affaires ad interim.” This appears to confirm that President Obama will not appoint am ambassador immediately. Obama potentially could, however, make the appointment during the senate recess in August, which then would have to be approved by the senate by the end of the following session, i.e. by year-end.

The fact sheet said that the embassy “will operate like other embassies in restrictive societies around the world, and will operate in sync with our values and the President’s policy. Diplomats will be able to meet and exchange opinions with both government and nongovernment entities”. Notably, it did not clarify whether US diplomats would be able to travel freely around the island, which had been a key sticking point in the negotiations. DeLaurentis, however, now on his third stint in Cuba (he was as a consular officer in Cuba in 1991-1993, during the ‘Special Period’ after the Soviet Union’s collapse, and was head of the Interests Section's economic and political section in 1999-2002), reportedly prefers to be out from behind his desk and is regularly spotted out and about in Havana, apparently without restrictions.

• No change in migration policy

The new State Department Fact Sheet also said that no change in current US migration policy is envisaged. According to US Customs and Border Protection, 9,371 Cubans arrived in the US, mostly on the border with Mexico and in Miami, Florida, in the first quarter of 2015, a year on year increase of 118%. The surge is due to concerns in Cuba that the special US entry provisions for Cuban migrants might be removed with the restoration of relations.

The Cuban Adjustment Act of 1996 (CAA) gives the US attorney general the discretion to offer any Cuban citizen permanent residence in the US after spending one year in the country, with no yearly quota on immigrants. Under a 1995 revision of the CCA agreed with the Cuban government in the wake of the Balseros crisis, the US agreed to stop admitting Cubans detained at sea. Under the so-called ‘wet foot, dry foot’ policy, Cubans picked up by US authorities at sea are repatriated to Cuba or a third country, while those making it onto dry US land are given leave to remain. Cuba has long decried the CCA as encouraging illegal (and life-endangering) migration and since Cuba in January 2014 significantly relaxed its migration policy, there have been fresh calls for its removal. However the State Department said that the Obama administration “has no plans to alter current migration policy, including the Cuban Adjustment Act. The United States continues to support safe, legal and orderly migration from Cuba to the United States and the full implementation of the existing migration accords with Cuba”. End box

• Finally the US State Department fact sheet noted that “the embargo on Cuba is still in place and legislative action is required to lift it. Additionally, rules for travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens remain in effect. The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control will continue to administer the regulations that provide general licenses for the 12 categories of authorized travel to Cuba.” The US company Carnival Corp may become the first US cruise operator to serve Cuba in 50 years after the US Treasury and Commerce departments approved its request for a licence. Carnival is still awaiting a permit from the Cuban government but hopes to begin offering a service in May 2016 under its new ‘Fathom’ tour brand, aimed at socially-conscious tourists.