Castro - Cuba willing to work with Trump — under these conditions

Castro: Cuba willing to work with Trump — under these conditions
By Associated Press January 26, 2017 | 12:49am
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BAVARO, Dominican Republic — President Raul Castro expressed Cuba's
willingness to continue negotiations with President Donald Trump's new
administration but warned that his country would not concede any of its
sovereignty.

Castro made the comments at a summit of Latin American and Caribbean
leaders in the Dominican Republic that was dominated by talk of Trump's
immigration and trade policies, and his criticism of the detente between
Cuba and the United States that was promoted by Trump's predecessor in
the presidency, Barack Obama.

"Cuba and the United States can cooperate and live together in a
civilized manner," Castro said Wednesday in a speech at the summit of
the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.

He said Cuba was willing to continue normalizing relations with
Washington but his country would not "make concessions inherent to its
independence and sovereignty" to achieve this.

The leaders veered off the expected script for the summit after Trump
signed executive actions calling for construction of a border wall and
stripping support for so-called sanctuary cities. Many of the leaders
also warily anticipated his support for protectionist measures.

Salvadoran President Salvador Sanchez said his country would take action
to confront the changes, while other leaders pledged to reject the
criminalization of immigration and defend the rights of migrants.

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa called upon everyone to "assume a
clear position in defense of migrants, not only from Latin America and
the Caribbean, but the entire world."

Chilean Foreign Minister Heraldo Munoz said that during the group's
first meeting, which was held behind closed doors, an attitude opposing
protectionism and closed borders prevailed.

"Latin America and the Caribbean have taken a stand in favor of the
integration, in favor of the opening, in favor of the preservation of
the advances that have been made in the matter of free trade," he said.

The presidents of Chile, Mexico and Colombia announced at the last
minute that they would not be attending the summit, which only drew 10
presidents and two prime ministers.

Source: Castro: Cuba willing to work with Trump — under these conditions
| New York Post -
http://nypost.com/2017/01/26/castro-cuba-willing-to-work-with-trump-under-these-conditions/