Two to Rumba: The European Union Decides to Negotiate With Cuba
Two to Rumba: The European Union Decides to Negotiate With Cuba
The need to support ongoing economic reform in Cuba makes it more necessary now to talk to Cuba, rather than talk about Cuba.
On February 10, the European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) approved a mandate to start negotiating an overall agreement with Cuba. This decision had been under preparation since 2008, when the EU renewed its political dialogue with Havana. Between 2003 and 2008, relations had been at a low point following a series of strong measures against the island’s dissident community.
It took years of internal diplomacy within the EU and its institutions to gain the February 10 decision. The intermediate step was a previous decision by the FAC on November 19, 2012 to start work on the...
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