Obama to meet Raul Castro, dissidents on historic trip to Cuba

BY JEFF MASON AND DANIEL TROTTA- Fri Feb 19, 2016

President Barack Obama will meet dissidents and President Raul Castro in Cuba next month, the White House said on Thursday, announcing a historic trip that will be another major step towards ending decades of animosity between former Cold War foes.

In the first visit by a U.S. president to the Caribbean nation since 1928, Obama will meet entrepreneurs and people from different walks of life during the trip on March 21 and 22, but he is unlikely to see Fidel Castro, the former president and revolutionary leader, U.S. officials said.

The White House hopes Obama's trip will help accelerate change on the Communist-run island and cement progress made under his watch, but Republicans at home complained that it would give legitimacy to Cuba's oppressive government.

"Next month, I'll travel to Cuba to advance our progress and efforts that can improve the lives of the Cuban people," Obama wrote on Twitter.

After decades of hostility following Cuba's 1959 revolution, the two countries agreed in 2014 to move to reopen ties, but the U.S. embargo on Cuba remains and Washington frequently criticizes Havana's human rights record.

The opening to Cuba was a diplomatic feat that is likely to form part of Obama's foreign policy legacy along with the nuclear deal he struck with another long-time U.S. foe, Iran.

Officials decided that travelling to Cuba now rather than at the end of Obama's term would give them more leverage to make progress on expanding Internet access and opening up business opportunities for Cubans and Americans.

Obama regularly meets with civil society groups when he travels abroad, and officials said this trip would be no different.

"He’ll be meeting with dissidents, with members of civil society, including those who certainly oppose the Cuban government’s policies," Obama's deputy national security adviser, Ben Rhodes, told reporters.

Josefina Vidal, the director of U.S. affairs for the Cuban Foreign Ministry, said the Cuban government is willing to talk with the United States about its concerns.

"Cuba is open to speak to the U.S. government about any topic, including human rights," Vidal told reporters. She said the Cuban government wants Guantanamo Bay returned to Cuba and the embargo lifted before relations can be normalized.

Cuban dissidents gave a cautious welcome to the trip.

"He should take advantage of this opportunity to send a loud, clear message," prominent opposition blogger Yoani Sanchez wrote on her website. "The material and moral poverty that surrounds us is not the responsibility of the United States."

The United States has upheld a strict economic embargo on Cuba for more than 50 years, providing the Cuban government with a strong propaganda tool against Washington.