Cuba and the United States Restore Diplomatic Relations

Discussions hosted by Canada and encouraged by Pope Francis addressed prisoners and the wider relationship before the breakthrough announced in December 2014. Cuba released Alan Gross, and a separate intelligence prisoner exchange accompanied the announcement. President Barack Obama then instructed John Kerry to begin negotiations on restoring diplomatic relations. [1]

The Cuban flag rose over the embassy in Washington on the morning of 20 July 2015. Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez attended the ceremony, then met Secretary of State John Kerry later that day. More than fifty-four years after the break, the two countries had restored diplomatic relations. [3] [4]

Their interests sections had already been doing much of an embassy’s work when negotiations secured their elevation to embassies. Announcing the agreement on 1 July, President Barack Obama argued that isolation had failed and that direct engagement would allow Americans to deal more freely with Cuba and its people. [2] [4]

Rodríguez used the reopening to call for an end to the American embargo and the return of Guantánamo, while American officials continued to raise democracy and human rights. Obama, too, wanted the embargo lifted, but that required Congress to act. It remained in force as the embassies reopened. [3] [2]

Related Diplomats

1. José Ramón Cabañas Rodríguez [5] [6] [7]

Related Reading

• Cuba and the United States