The New York Times and Yonhap reported on the 18th that President Barrack Obama has announced that the Unites States will officially be normalizing diplomatic and economic relations with the Republic of Cuba. This is the first time the U.S. had opened its doors to the small socialist nation after 53 long years of hostility. This was a historic moment in the 2 nations’ shared history, and many expect that this new gesture of peace would help to improve America’s relations to all the countries of Latin America.
KMIB reported that President Obama is hoping to fully remove the economic blockade on the Republic of Cuba. This restoration of the U.S. and Cuba’s relations is expected to spark a great deal of exchange between the 2 nations in variety of different factions. For instance, American corporations are already seeking to establish branches in Cuba. This is especially the case for travel agencies and importers who are interesting in bringing Cuban goods including cigars.
The U.S. Department of Commerce and the Department of Treasury will soon be announcing specific regulations regarding economic exchange with the Republic of Cuba. While the Department of Treasury is currently discussing regulations regarding importing exporting agricultural goods to Cuba, and even opening bank accounts, the Department of Commerce is working with American corporations to export equipment for communication.
Another crucial faction that will be influenced by the end of hostilities between Cuba and America is baseball. Cuba is known to have some of the best amateur baseball players in the world. Because Cuba does not have a professional league of its own, many players would have to choose exile to the United States to play for MLB ball clubs. Star players including Yasiel Puig (Los Angeles Dodgers) had to take life-threatening journeys into the United States for the opportunity to play baseball as a profession. With relations normalized Cuban baseball players could now freely travel to the U.S. for opportunities to build MLB careers.
The White House announced in their statement that America’s past conflicts with Cuba may have played a role in undermining its relations with the rest of Latin America. Meanwhile, the opening of an age of cooperation between the United States and Cuba is heavily welcomed by the rest of the international community. Most Latin American nations including Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay have had very uneasy relations with the U.S. However, Seoul News Paper reported most nations in Latin America have praised this recent turn of events as a sign of hope that Latin America could be rid of the hostility against the United States.
Other capitalist nations including Japan and South Korea have also expressed a great deal of excitement at the reconciliation of the U.S. and Cuba. The South Korea government officially congratulated the 2 nations, according to Asia Economic, through their own Foreign Ministry website. The U.S. and other capitalist nations have pointed out that other left-wing states such as Venezuela and North Korea should take action to reconcile with the U.S. as the Cubans have done.
