Perhaps but the regime is still the same. Once they open up to democracy I will fully support fully opening relations with Cuba. For now, no. Travel and some basic essentials is something else. I support travel because culture can help bring down the current regime and basics like medicine etc will enhance our reputation but more than that will only empower a regime hostile to our well being.
Heh, how well we know. We lift you back up every day and put duct tape and bondo on you. You are welcome.
All we are doing is handing the Island to the Chinese who started a few years ago to sell buses to Cuba and build hotels. Sorry but U.S. does business with Russia and China but we suddenly now have morals to not deal with a bad regime?????? Cuba is finished. The Castros are gone and the people from the 1960s are pretty much dead. it is time to open up with Cuba so you can force changes in the government.
It’s a fair argument but I would rather get some cultural and humanitarian exchange going first. Then let that foment for a bit and see where we are. The Chinese are everywhere and everywhere they go they sell their dollar store crap and ruin their reputation worse. People would rather have American quality all over the world.
The real problem developing nations have with China is that their deals are contingent on the nation taking on a heavy load of Chinese debt backed by assets in the country. Invariably the Chinese firms greatly under-perform on their commitments for building roads, trains, airports, ports, etc. and the loan defaults since the nation can't pay it back with no revenue from the project coming in. At this point the Chinese seize assets including natural resource sites, etc. in the nation.... leaving the country further impoverished. Not to mention all the bribery associated with most of these deals.
Yes, and they need to show good behavior too. Obama tossed them quite a few bones. They rewarded us by trying to microwave our diplomats there in the embassy like they were frozen pizza or something. Also. Might be nice to do forward thinking about how to make Puerto Rico more zippy before obsessing too much over Cuba. There are lots of things that Cuba could be with more American effort. Okay but that is true for Puerto Rico as well. And our responsibility to them is greater.