It is likely the first American manufacturer to open shop in Cuba since the 1959 revolution. The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) approved co-owners Horace Clemmons and Cuban-born Saul Berenthal to build a factory at the port of Mariel (a tree trade zone west of Havana). The factory is intended to … Read more
By Alexander Britell Let the commercial aviation battle for Cuba begin. The US and Cuba have officially finalized their landmark air service agreement, paving the way for the imminent launch of regularly-scheduled commercial flights. “We are excited to announce the availability of new scheduled air service opportunities to Cuba for U.S. carriers, shippers, and the traveling … Read more
According to a recent Gallup Survey, 54% of Americans now view Cuba “in a favorable light,” up 33 percentage points since 2006 and a whopping 44% since 1996, when Gallup first started measuring sentiment. Gallup’s Jim Norman comments, “a majority of the American public, which for decades has viewed Cuba in a decidedly negative light, … Read more
A delegation of US pediatricians co-led by Dr. Stephen Berman of Children’s Hospital Colorado (Children’s Colorado) and the Colorado School of Public Health, travelled to Havana to establish relationships with local physicians and collaborate on ways to improve child health in both countries. The delegation was co-led by Dr. James Perrin of Harvard University and … Read more
It’s no secret that American travel to Cuba is booming, but how many US visitors actually traveled to the island last year? According to the Cuban government’s official numbers, 145,000 Americans came to Cuba in 2015, an increase of 79 percent from the previous year, generally coming to the country under one of the 12 … Read more
In December, the United States and Cuba reached a bilateral agreement to establish scheduled air services between the two countries. Next week the two nations will sign a formal agreement to resume one-way commercial air traffic. US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs Charles H. Rivkin are … Read more
At a conference of the American Coalition of Agriculture to Cuba on Thursday, U.S. Secretary for Agriculture Tom Vilsack indicated plans to open an office in Cuba to promote trade. “There are a number of preliminary matters that have to be addressed before trade can be re-opened and before the embargo is lifted,” according to … Read more
US-Cuba Dialogue continues By Dana Niland Cuba Journal Contributor Cuba’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment Rodrigo Malmierca Diaz will lead a working visit to the United States next week. The visit will take place from February 15 to 18, according to a statement from Cuba’s government. Diaz will be leading a delegation composed … Read more
Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic Church, will stop in Cuba today for a historic meeting with the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, at Havana’s José Martí International airport. The Pope has said the purpose for the meeting is to have a “personal conversation” with the leader of the Russian Orthodox … Read more
Earlier this week, about 100 California winemakers, producers and distributors participated in the first-ever California Wine Symposium in Havana in hopes of reviving the presence of California wines on Cuban dining tables. The two-day event that began on Feb. 1 was organized by the California Wine Institute, associations of Sonoma and Napa Valley wine producers … Read more
