On April 20 (local time), Mr. Alejandro Garcia del Toro, Deputy Director General in charge of US Affairs of the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed that the Cuban delegation had talks in Havana with the US delegation recently, amid high tensions between the two countries over Washington's energy embargo on this Caribbean nation.
The US delegation includes Assistant Secretary of State, and the Cuban delegation includes representatives at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers.
The entire exchange was conducted with respect and professionalism" - Mr. Garcia del Toro said.
In comments published in the Cuban Communist Party's Granma newspaper, Garcia del Toro emphasized that ending the US 3-month oil embargo is a "top priority" of the Cuban government in negotiations, and accused Washington of threatening oil exporting countries to Cuba with tariffs.
This economic coercive action is an unfair punishment to the entire Cuban people," he said.
This is also an action against sovereign countries, countries that have every right to export fuel to Cuba, in accordance with the principles of free trade," Mr. Garcia del Toro added.
Previously, the US news agency Axios reported that officials from the administration of US President Donald Trump had many meetings in Havana on April 10. These meetings marked the first time US diplomats had visited Cuba since 2016 in a new diplomatic effort.
US officials have set out a number of conditions for negotiations with Cuba to continue, including liberalizing the economy, allowing Elon Musk's Starlink Internet terminals to enter the country...
