U.S. Officials Attend Business Meeting in Cuba

U.S. Officials Attend Business Meeting in Cuba

Havana, Oct 17 – City Council members of Tampa and St. Petersburg, businesspeople and Tampa Port Authorities, attend today a business meeting in Cuba.

After talking with government authorities of this capital, the U.S. delegation will exchange views with representatives of the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment (Citma), the Ministry of Transport and the Center of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, among other Cuban institutions.

During a meeting in this capital with the legendary Cuban ballerina Alicia Alonso, the eve, the U.S. group advocated for normalization of relations among both nations.

This delegation arrives in Cuba after the U.S. government announced the decision of withdrawing ‘non essential’ diplomatic personnel and their families from their Embassy in the island, in response to alleged incidents affecting some of them.

Despite not presenting any evidence of a deliberate action on the part of Cuba or someone else, the U.S. Executive recently recommended U.S. citizens not to visit this Caribbean country.

We are here for the future, with the hope that someday these problems will be resolved and our nations will move to normal relations, asserted the Vice President of the Tampa City Council, Harry Cohen.

Those who came here have the best of hopes that we will normalize relations and everything be positive for both our countries, confirmed the President of the St. Petersburg City Council, Darden Rier, whose city -as Tampa- belong to the U.S. state of Florida.

For her part the president of the Council of the City of Tampa, Ivonne Yolie Capin, recalled her metropolis and Havana have a very ancient history of which gave proof in the 19th Century Jose Marti, Apostle of Cuba, who has a park there with his name.

We are here for the future relations between Tampa and Havana, underlined this granddaughter of a Cuban who said to be enchanted to see such a beautiful building as the Grand Theater of Havana Alicia Alonso, to meet that artiste and see a performance of the National Cuban Ballet (BNC).

As it is usual in each public appearance, Alonso was received with ovations and applause in the institution who took her name since 2015 and during the meeting with the U.S. delegation, she held hands with Capin for a few minutes, as a gesture of affection.

The philanthropist, businessman and president of the Straz Center for Arts of Tampa, David A. Straz (son), celebrated that the BNC will perform in his institution in May, 2018 and offered the Cuban prima ballerina absolute all the comfort so she may travel there leading her company.

We are greatly interested in expanding relations between the United States and Cuba, particularly between Tampa and Cuba and I am also very interested in arts as I am a benefactor of these in my country, I am very happy to be here, of meeting Alicia Alonso and enjoy the ballet, he said.

The U.S. delegation will visit tomorrow the Speial Development Zone of Mariel, located in the Artemisa province, west of Havana and later will be received by the Ministry of Foreign Relations of Cuba.

Since their arrival to the country, the group expressed interest in continuing the exchange programs with Cuba in all sectors: economic, cultural, academic and scientific, among others. (Prensa Latina)