US lawmakers want blockage on Cuba revisited

HAVANA (AP):

Two US lawmakers called for a permanent solution to Cuba's crises after witnessing the effects of a US energy blockade during an official visit to the island.

Democratic Reps. Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Jonathan Jackson of Illinois met with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez and members of Parliament during a five-day trip that ended Sunday.

Diaz-Canel wrote on X Monday that upon meeting with Jayapal and Jackson, he "denounced the criminal damage caused by the #blockade, particularly the consequences of the energy embargo imposed by the current US administration and its threats of even more aggressive actions."

Diaz-Canel added: "I reiterated our government's willingness to engage in serious and responsible bilateral dialogue and find solutions to our existing differences."

Both the US and Cuba have acknowledged recently that talks are ongoing at the highest level, but no details have been disclosed.

Jayapal told reporters she believes that recent steps taken by Cuba, such as opening the economy to certain investments by Cuban Americans living abroad; the recent announcement that more than 2,000 prisoners would be pardoned; and the arrival of an FBI team to collaborate in the investigation of a fatal shooting involving a US-flagged boat, "indicate that the moment is here for us to have a real negotiation between the two countries and to reverse the failed US policy of decades, a Cold War remnant that no longer serves the American people or the Cuban people."