WASHINGTON – Even as U.S. officials push for regime change in Cuba, the top Cuban official in the U.S. laid out a roadmap for closer ties between the two former Cold War foes that could pave the way to business deals and better relations in an exclusive interview with USA TODAY.
Lianys Torres Rivera, the top Cuban diplomat, wouldn’t reveal any details on the ongoing talks between Washington and Havana and stressed that Cuba will retain its sovereignty. But she told USA TODAY that the island nation is willing to cooperate with the Trump administration on a myriad of issues and have the U.S. participate in Cuba’s economic reformation.
“There’s a huge … range of issues that we can discuss with the U.S. that are, we’re pretty sure, for the benefit of the national interests of the U.S. and the national interest of Cuba,” Torres Rivera said. “So, the U.S. wants to be engaged in the economic transformation in Cuba? Let’s do it.”
Other steps, she said, that could improve relations between the two countries include:
Torres Rivera’s comments offered the first glimpse into what Cuba may want in an economic-focused deal between Washington and Havana that’s been the subject of closely-held negotiations.
The high-level talks are being led on the American side by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and began in earnest after the U.S. imposed an oil blockade on Cuba two months ago. Rubio met with the grandson of former Cuban leader Raul Castro in February. Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel confirmed that talks were taking place with the U.S. for the first time on Mar. 13.
Over the past few weeks, Trump has hinted at a bellicose seizure of Cuba, saying “Cuba’s next” and referring to a “friendly” − or not so friendly − takeover of the island.
Comments by Torres Rivera and other Cuban officials point to a willingness by the Cuban government to reform economically and expand business ties with the U.S.
In a Mar. 29 interview with Al Jazeera, Josefina Vidal, Cuba’s deputy foreign minister, reiterated that Cuba will not compromise on its sovereignty – while hinting at a possible economic agreement with the U.S.
“We are ready and willing and open to put on the agenda negotiations with the United States,” she said. “There are endless possibilities for Cuba and the United States to work together … Cuba is open for opportunities.”
Rubio told reporters on Mar. 27 that Cuba would “never be able to develop economically” unless it moved away from communism. “Giving people economic and political freedom is important, but they come hand in hand. They come together,” he said.
Torres Rivera said she would like to see Trump use executive actions to ease certain sanctions on Cuba, including from the U.S. embargo that was enacted in 1962 as a way to isolate the communist island. The embargo was codified into law in 1996 through the Helms-Burton Act.
She also suggested connecting scientists and law enforcement officials from both countries to work together on new initiatives — on everything from Alzheimer’s drugs to combatting drug trafficking.
“President Trump has in his hands the opportunity of setting a relation with Cuba, an equality in relations between Cuba and the U.S., that might benefit both countries,” Torres Rivera said. “He can be the one to do that.”
A senior Trump administration official declined to comment directly on what Torres Rivera laid out other than to say it sounded like the regime is getting desperate.
What remains unknown is what Cuban officials are prepared to concede or change in exchange for the loosening of restrictions. Torres Rivera and other Cuban officials have repeatedly said they’re unwilling to surrender their right to govern as they choose.
A senior State Department official told USA TODAY that the U.S. wants the Cuban regime to make a deal that would allow the Cuban people to be free and prosperous with the help of the United States. As part of any agreement, the regime must make significant changes, including allowing for privatization of businesses and for the Cuban people to be able to financially provide for themselves, the official said.
Modifying U.S. sanctions on Cuba has historically been a tricky political maneuver. Twelve U.S. presidents over six decades – from John F. Kennedy to President Trump – have grappled with how to navigate the embargo, the longest-lasting series of sanctions in U.S. foreign policy history, to varying effect. Cuba estimates it has lost more than $170 billion in revenue due to the sanctions since Kennedy implemented them in 1962.
Most countries, including several top U.S. allies, have formally encouraged America to end the embargo through their support of an annual resolution at the United Nations.
In October, the U.N. General Assembly adopted a non-binding resolution by a vote of 165-7 (with 12 abstentions) calling on the U.S. to end the embargo – marking the 33rd consecutive year a similar resolution has passed.
Torres Rivera pointed to the U.N. resolution as evidence that the U.S. is on the wrong side of the issue.
“Americans are welcome in Cuba. U.S. companies are welcome in Cuba. Cuban Americans are welcome in Cuba to invest or to trade,” she said. “Our country would be, the standard of living of the Cuban people could have been very different…if we could do all of this.”
Though removing the embargo wholesale requires a vote by Congress, Trump could defang many of the sanctions via presidential directives and executive orders, such as removing Cuba from the State Department’s terror list, said Robert Muse, a Washington-based lawyer specializing in American laws relating to Cuba.
For instance, on Feb. 25, the Trump administration began allowing U.S. petroleum products, such as diesel, to be sold directly to Cuba’s private sector.
“He can do an infinite number of things,” said Muse, such as loosen travel restrictions to the island or allow direct interaction with Cuban businesses. “Any president could leave the embargo on Cuba like a piece of Swiss cheese: all holes and no cheese.”
Cuba would need to pass significant economic reform, such as allowing international investors to hire Cuban workers directly or privatize government-held entities, such as hotels, before Trump officials would consider easing the embargo, said Richard Feinberg, a University of California San Diego professor and author of “Open for Business: Building the New Cuban Economy.”
Cuban reforms would need to be in lockstep with the U.S. loosening of the embargo, he said.
“Who’s going to invest in an island under sanctions?” Feinberg said. “Serious reform on the island must go hand-in-hand with a serious lifting of the sanctions.”
Another important step Cuba could take would be to settle outstanding claims from people and businesses who allege the Cuban government confiscated their properties in the 1960s, he said. The U.S. government estimates Cuba owes nearly $2 billion to some 6,000 companies for properties they nationalized, though some independent estimates are significantly higher.
In February, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in two cases in which U.S. companies are seeking compensation for confiscated properties.
“That would show good faith,” Feinberg said, “and it would show, ‘Ok, we are serious.’”
Francesca Chambers is a White House correspondent for USA TODAY covering foreign policy and presidential elections. You can follow her on X @fran_chambers.
Rick Jervis is a National Correspondent for USA TODAY’s Investigations team based in Austin, Texas. Follow Jervis on X: @MrRJervis.