EU seeking to upgrade bloc's ties with Cuba

Posted on Thursday, 02.06.14



EU seeking to upgrade bloc's ties with Cuba

BY JUERGEN BAETZ

ASSOCIATED PRESS



BRUSSELS -- Europe is set to upgrade its ties with Cuba in a bid to

broaden economic cooperation and demand more progress on respecting

human rights and fundamental freedoms, a senior European Union official

said Thursday.



The 28-nation bloc's foreign ministers will endorse a mandate to

negotiate a new, broad political agreement with Cuba at their upcoming

meeting Monday, the official said.



The agreement won't include facilitating trade relations or more

development aid for Cuba, but it will mark a crucial step in that

direction by broadening and regularizing the two sides' political

exchanges, he said.



The official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity ahead of

the decision's announcement, declined to detail what progress on human

rights the EU will specifically demand from Cuba, saying it would be

counterproductive to cite specific benchmarks at this point.



He insisted, however, that any progress on reaching the new political

framework will hinge on "developments on the island since the idea is to

accompany the process of reforms, modernization and further

strengthening of fundamental freedoms and human rights."



Should Cuba's progress stall, he suggested, then "the motivation to

engage frequently will be much less. Other priorities will get the upper

hand."



In Havana, Cuban officials did not immediately respond to a request for

comment about the forthcoming EU mandate.



The EU resumed low-level contacts with Cuba in 2008, two years after

Raul Castro became president and started granting Cubans some more

freedom, including lifting some travel restrictions, while also slowly

opening up the state-dominated economy to private businesses.



Washington's relations with Cuba are defined by the 52-year-old trade

embargo, but European nations have long traded with Cuba, and thousands

of sun-seeking Europeans flock to the islands' Caribbean beaches every year.



The EU official said the bloc's move comes in "full understanding with

Washington," noting that the U.S. position on Cuba also is experiencing

some relaxation. The U.S. and the EU are both hoping Cuba will implement

further reforms, "therefore this is not an issue where out paths

diverge," he added.



Cuba has received about 80 million ($110 million) in development aid

from the EU since 2008. While that sum is small, experts say the EU

would certainly be ready to provide more assistance, if the country took

further steps toward democratization and respect for fundamental freedoms.



The EU already is the Caribbean island nation's second most important

trading partner, trailing only Cuba's socialist ally Venezuela, and one

of the biggest sources of foreign direct investment. About one-fifth of

Cuba's imports currently come from Europe, according to EU figures.



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Follow Juergen Baetz on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jbaetz



AP writer Andrea Rodriguez in Havana contributed reporting.



Source: BRUSSELS: EU seeking to upgrade bloc's ties with Cuba - Business

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