USA: The U.S. says if Cuba begins a transition to democracy, it will look at ways to "deepen" its relationship with the country.

The United States said on Wednesday (August 22) that if Cuba begins a political opening and a transition to democracy then it will look at ways to "deepen" its relationship with the country. The top U.S. State department diplomat for Cuba said that U.S. President George W. Bush's offer in 2002 - to consider working with the U.S. Congress to lift the embargo on Cuba if it makes certain moves towards democracy - still stands. "You might recall that in 2002, President Bush in a speech in May 2002, effectively made an offer to the Cuban regime. He said that if the Cuban regime were prepared to free political prisoners, respect human rights especially those rights most important for the effective exercise of democracy, if he were prepared to permit the formation of independent organisations such as political parties, trade unions, civic associations that were not dominated by the state and if he were prepared to create a mechanism and a pathway to elections we would look in consultation with our congress for ways to lift the embargo and begin a deeper engagement with the Cuban state. In 2002, obviously that offer was rejected by the Castro regime. But from our point of view, the offer is still on the table," Thomas Shannon, Assistant U.S. Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs told reporters. Cuban leader Fidel Castro temporarily handed over the reins of power to his brother Raul on July 31 after undergoing emergency surgery to stop intestinal bleeding attributed by the Cuban authorities to his workaholic pace. The Bush administration, which has labelled the hand-over of power from one Castro brother to another as an unacceptable "dynastic succession," has in recent years tightened enforcement of a more than four-decade-old trade embargo on Cuba. "Obviously for public purposes, Raul Castro has been designated as the heir apparent but as I indicate what I think what we're really seeing is a transfer of power to institutions not individuals. There will be to some extent negotiations between those institutions as they try to come to some kind of power sharing arrangement with Fidel Castro being some kind of ultimate arbiter," said Shannon. He also said it would be "a sad thing" if Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez took sides with a totalitarian Cuba. "This is an important moment for Venezuela. Venezuela has the opportunity to play an important and useful role in Cuba's future if it chooses to associate itself with a successful democratic transition, if it choose to recognize its obligations under the Interamerican Democratic charter, if it chooses to promote and defend democracy. We hope that's the decision that Venezuela and President Chavez are prepared to take," Shannon said. Details of Castro's illness and the operation he underwent are a closely guarded state secret and rumours had been rife he might even have died until Cuba released photographs and video of Castro around his 80th birthday on Aug. 13. The images showed the bedridden leader alert and joking with Chavez.

ITN Source | August 24, 2006

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