In brief trip to Havana, Kerry to preside over U.S. embassy flag-raising

In brief trip to Havana, Kerry to preside over U.S. embassy flag-raising
BY MIMI WHITEFIELD
mwhitefield@MiamiHerald.com

When the stars and stripes run up the flagpole Friday at the U.S.
Embassy in Havana for the first time in nearly 55 years, it will
officially mark the end of the Cold War in the Caribbean and the
beginning of the really tough work of trying to forge a normal
relationship between the United States and Cuba.

As part of a thaw that was announced Dec. 17, the two countries
established diplomatic relations on July 20 and both nations converted
their diplomatic missions from interests sections to full-fledged embassies.

Cuba raised its flag at its Washington embassy the first day diplomatic
ties were restored, but the United States is waiting until Friday when
Secretary of State John Kerry will do the honors in Havana. Three of the
U.S. marines who took down the last U.S. flag to fly over the embassy on
Jan. 3, 1961 will be guests at the ceremony.

Kerry will preside over two flag-raising events, the first at the
embassy in the morning then a second just before a late afternoon
reception at the home of the U.S. chief of mission in Havana's Cubanacan
neighborhood. In addition to American business executives, academics and
others who have been supportive of the U.S. opening toward Cuba, some
dissidents and other members of Cuban civil society also are on the
guest list for the 4:15 p.m. reception.

Demand for invitations to the events has been brisk. "It's a hot
ticket," said invitee Geoff Thale, program director of the Washington
Office on Latin America and a Cuba specialist. With the deal to reopen
embassies already consummated, "this is the champagne-popping moment,"
he said.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican presidential hopeful, has written
a letter to Kerry urging him to "demand the freedom and rights of the
Cuban people" and to meet with dissident leaders while in Havana. About
90 dissidents were briefly detained on Sunday. Some wore Obama masks,
saying it was President Barack Obama's fault that the Cuban government
is growing bolder in moving against them.

Although Kerry is expected to meet with senior Cuban officials during
his quick one-day trip, neither leader Raúl Castro nor his brother Fidel
is expected at the events. Kerry is the first U.S. secretary of state to
visit Cuba since 1945 and his trip is a prelude to a possible visit by
Obama before the end of his term.

During Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez's trip to Washington in
July, he and Kerry talked about the possibility of setting up a
bilateral commission or steering committee that would have regular
meetings to discuss normalization issues.

Since Obama and Raúl Castro announced they planned to work toward
normalization, there have been a number of meetings and discussions on
issues such as migration, telecommunications and the Internet, human
rights, environmental protection and fisheries, human trafficking,
cooperation on law enforcement and counter-narcotics and civil aviation.

The United States, for example, is awaiting a Cuban response on a
proposal to reestablish regularly scheduled air service, and has around
a dozen proposals pending before the Cubans. During ongoing discussions,
the Cuban side also has been pushing for the resumption of direct mail
service between the two countries.

"They will deal with the obvious low-hanging fruit first," said Ted
Piccone, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. But negotiations
on other issues will be "contentious and slow," he said.

While in Washington, Rodriguez was crystal clear about what Cuba's
priorities are in the evolving relationship: lifting the blockade — the
Cuban term for the embargo, return of the U.S. Navy base at Guantánamo
Bay, and reparations for economic damages for economic and human damages
caused by the embargo and terrorist acts against the island.

"That [reparations], I think is a non-starter. It would wreak havoc with
American foreign policy," said Richard Feinberg, a professor of
international political economy at the University of California, San
Diego and former senior director of the National Security Council's
Office of Inter-American Affairs during the Clinton administration. "We
would, in fact, be giving up economic sanctions as a tool if we acceded
to Cuba on this."

Even though only Congress can lift the embargo, Rodriguez has said he
thinks Obama can do more to chip away at its impact by using his
executive authority. Obama has already said he wants to work with
Congress to end the embargo.

Most analysts say that will be difficult in an election year. But
Washington lawyer Robert Muse said Obama could further use his executive
power to create a "hollowed out embargo'' — one that is essentially
"more holes than cheese."

Another cloud over the budding relationship is an estimated $6 billion
to $8 billion, in today's dollars, in 5,913 certified claims by U.S.
companies and citizens whose properties were expropriated by Cuba during
the early years of the revolution. The United States has asked the
Cubans for the first meeting on claims this fall, according to U.S. sources.

"The Cuban government does recognize the principle of compensation — the
argument is how much," said Feinberg.

Since Dec. 17, it's common to see U.S. and Cuban flags draped from
balconies of Havana apartments and Cubans wearing clothing ranging from
kerchiefs to spandex in stars and stripe patterns.

With the embassy already open, the flag-raisings are symbolic but
nonetheless significant. "It's important to see have these rituals,'
said Miami lawyer Pedro Freyre. "For people to see the American flag
flying on the Malecón will really be something."

But South Florida Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen worries raising
the American flag in Havana could send the wrong message.

"The U.S. flag is the symbol of freedom and liberty not only to our
nation, but across the globe. I am concerned that the image of our flag
may be tarnished in the eyes of the suffering Cuban people due to the
administration's misguided concessions to Castro. We must redouble our
efforts to educate and support the people of Cuba to ensure that this
flag continues to serve as an inspiration for those who seek democracy,
justice and respect for human rights."

Raising the flag also sends a message about how far the relationship
between the two countries has progressed from a decade ago. In 2006, for
example, an electronic ticker set up across the facade of the then-U.S.
Interests Section flashed messages such as "Democracia en Cuba" or "I
have a dream that one day this nation will rise up" in five-foot-tall
red letters. Its intent was to bring messages of hope to the Cuban
people but also to annoy Fidel Castro.

The Cubans responded by erecting a thicket of dozens of flag poles
across the way and flying black flags to block the view. But after
taking office, Obama pulled the plug on the provocative electronic sign
in July 2009 and the Cubans took down the black flags.

Rubio has said he will seek to block confirmation of a U.S. ambassador
to Cuba until topics, such as outstanding claims for confiscated U.S.
properties, the return of U.S. fugitives living in Cuba and political
freedom for the Cuban people, are addressed. Members of the
Cuban-American congressional delegation also oppose additional funding
to run an embassy. Ros-Lehtinen says she wants all non-security-related
funding blocked.

Both Rubio and Sen. Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican who has long
advocated for more travel to and trade with Cuba, sit on the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee as does Sen. Bob Menendez, D-New Jersey, who
also favors blocking confirmation of an ambassador. It's possible an
ambassadorial appointment will not get out of committee.

Committee Chairman Bob Corker, R-Tenn. "has a conundrum," said Peter
Schechter, director of the Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht Latin
American Center. Obama could make a recess appointment when Congress
isn't in session "but the question is would he make a recess appointment
without even giving it a try in Congress," he said.

To insure his Cuba legacy, however, Obama will need to go beyond opening
an embassy and renewing diplomatic relations, said Muse. "He needs to
build enduring trade relations with Cuba, get U.S. companies in there,"
he said.

While legislation to both lift the embargo and allow all Americans to
travel freely to Cuba has been introduced in Congress, "it's going to be
very tough to move on difficult votes during the presidential cycle,"
said Schechter. There are Republican business executives who are very
interested in seeing a further commercial opening with Cuba or an end to
the embargo, he said, but their top corporate interest might not be
Cuba. "These companies are not one-issue voters," Schechter said.

Piccone suggests that the Cuban government may not be all that eager to
put out the welcome mat for U.S. companies. "At the end of the day, I
think they want to open just enough to the United States so European
countries [that do business in both places] don't get penalized and work
with them while keeping the U.S. companies at bay."

However, he said, if American companies see European firms eating their
lunch, it could "generate more support for changes in U.S. policy toward
Cuba."

Source: In brief trip to Havana, Kerry to preside over U.S. embassy
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