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CUBA: STATE INFORMALLY ACKNOWLEDGES LIFTING OF EU SANCTIONS(English IPS News Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) HAVANA, Jun. 20, 2008 (IPS/GIN) -- Cuban officials have reacted cautiously to the European Union's decision to lift its diplomatic sanctions against the island, but the Cuban government has yet to issue an official response. The EU imposed the sanctions in 2003 after 75 Cuban dissidents received lengthy jail terms on charges of conspiring with Washington to destabilize the Cuban state, and after the Cuban government executed three men convicted of hijacking a passenger ferry. The governing Communist Party daily newspaper Granma published the news Friday under the headline, "EU Foreign Ministers Revoke Unjust Sanctions against Cuba." The brief article said, "The EU plans to reactivate political dialogue with Havana." But European diplomatic sources warned that the article cannot be considered an official response from the Cuban government, which will likely issue a formal response once the EU officially approves the lifting of the sanctions. Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe P?rez Roque said "If that has occurred, I believe it is a step in the right direction" on Thursday night when approached by a Reuters journalist at a reception held in honor of Uruguayan President Tabar? V?zquez. EU ambassadors in Havana held their monthly meeting Friday, in which the decision to lift sanctions, which was already expected, was "just one more point" on the agenda, said a diplomat who spoke to IPS on condition of anonymity. Some dissident groups responded to the announcement with disappointment or outright rejection, while more moderate groups said the EU decision was "the right thing to do." "We support dialogue as a route toward democratization," dissident leader Manuel Cuesta said. "Now we have to say that the ball is in the Cuban government's court." The EU temporarily suspended the sanctions in 2005. In March, the Cuban government insisted that dialogue would only be possible if the measures were officially eliminated. The sanctions included a limit on high-level government visits, a reduction in EU participation in Cuban cultural events, and the invitation of dissidents to the receptions held in European embassies in Havana on the countries' national days. The participation of dissidents in embassy receptions particularly irritated the Cuban government, which considers the dissidents to be "mercenaries" working for the U.S. According to the news from Brussels, the foreign ministers of the 27 EU countries reached an agreement that proposes, in addition to the removal of the measures, the start of a political dialogue with the Cuban government, which is now headed by Ra?l Castro. But at the behest of several countries opposed to the decision, the EU will reassess the results of the dialogue on political and human rights questions a year from now. Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel ngel Moratinos clarified, however, that the reassessment will not consider a renewal of the measures, which have been definitively struck down. Granma said that condition was "a renewed commitment to the so-called Common Position" on Cuba sponsored in 1996 by the Spanish right-wing government of Prime Minister Jos? Mar?a Aznar. Havana views the Common Position as "an instrument that meddles in Cuba's internal affairs." The Common Position was approved by the European Council with the stated aim of encouraging a gradual, peaceful transition toward better living conditions, a pluralist democracy and respect for human rights and basic freedoms in Cuba. That stance, which has complicated relations and has stood in the way of a framework cooperation accord between the EU and Cuba for years, was not mentioned as a hurdle to the normalization of ties during the visit to Havana in March of Louis Michel, the European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid. On that occasion, Michel and his host, Foreign Minister P?rez Roque, agreed that to engage in broad political dialogue encompassing all issues, including human rights, it was essential to lift the 2003 sanctions. Michel said he was in favor of such a move but clarified that it was up to the European Council to decide, and that the decision had to be unanimous. In a press conference in Brussels, Foreign Minister Moratinos said the aim in removing the diplomatic measures was to initiate a stage of dialogue that is neither conditioned nor limited by measures that, in the view of Spain's socialist government, have never been especially useful and were even counterproductive. Madrid heads the group of countries in favor of dialogue with the Cuban government, which has repeatedly stated that it will not accept pressure or impositions of any kind. Copyright ? 2008 Global Information Network |