This week, President Obama became the first U.S. President in nearly 90 years to visit the Latin American island nation of Cuba. America recently lifted sanctions on the country, paving the way for American companies to trade with some of their Cuban-owned counterparts. During the visit, Obama encouraged the American ideals of freedom of speech and democratic elections while denouncing arbitrary detentions of people. Obama’s call for a more open, democratic (dare I say, more capitalistic?) Cuba certainly has the support of a large percentage of Americans, the need for Congress to lift the economic embargo underscores Obama’s visit. In this week’s wrap, we examine some of the implications of our president’s visit.
Business and bank executives in the U.S. are still unsure what activities Washington will punish in regards to trade with Cuba. Still, the obstacles to investment in Cuba remain higher, with the government enforcing a ban on foreigners buying most property. The two countries, moreover, seem to have very different goals they want to achieve from the reestablishing of relations. This can lead to some clashing of heads, which can become an obstacle to U.S. business investment. The Cubans hope to derive some wealth from the deal in order to keep their people happy, while still retaining as much of the old regime as possible. The U.S., on the other hand, hopes Cuba will eventually become more open to the Internet, tourism and liberal democratic values.
The president’s visit to Cuba did not come without a minor scandal, which exposed the rift that remains between the two countries. Many Cuban citizens were ecstatic that an American president was visiting their country, at long last. However, many in the Cuban government were not so thrilled about Obama’s explicit plans to visit Cuban dissidents on his trip. To demonstrate their unhappiness, the government arrested 50 of these dissidents while Obama was en route to the country. The president remained proud that he was able to visit Cuba, shedding light on the opportunity to engage with the Cuban people and forge new agreements in a speech at the U.S. embassy in Havana.
Obama’s Cuban counterpart Raul Castro will likely be remembered for a long time in his home country for welcoming a U.S. president. His participation in a U.S.-style press conference, on its face, may have signaled a willingness to cater to U.S. interests. However, Castro snuck in several references to universal healthcare, gun violence and women’s pay that could have easily come from the mouth of Bernie Sanders. Since taking power in 2008, Castro has opened Cuba to reform, gradually liberalizing the economy and engaging former adversaries such as the United States. However, his insistence on maintaining the one-party system remains. While Fidel Castro will always be Cuba’s revolutionary icon, Raul may very well be seen as his country’s reformer.
What impact will Obama’s visit have on relations between America and Cuba? Tell us what you think in the comments below!
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Sam Bojarski is an associate at WordWrite Communications. He can be reached at sam.bojarski@wordwritepr.com.
