Cuba off the blacklist, N Korea only Cold War vestige left
19 Dec 2014 1:08 AM GMT
“If we normalize relations with Cuba, it cuts our Cold War vestige list in half,” said Cliff Kupchan, an analyst at the Eurasia Group, a political-risk research and consulting firm in Washington.
Political historians said the steps announced Wednesday to restore relations with Cuba were akin to events in the administrations of Richard M. Nixon and Jimmy Carter that led to normalized ties with China after three decades of hostility, and in the administrations of George Bush and Bill Clinton that established relations with Vietnam after a horrendous war.
Both of those countries, still run by nominally communist governments that have remained part of the post-World War II geopolitical landscape, now have extensive and deeply rooted relations and friendly connections with the United States. Although Cuba is far smaller than China or Vietnam, the prospect of an improvement of ties with the US could have profound implications for better US relations throughout Latin America, a goal Obama first pledged to reach more than five years ago.
Political historians said the steps announced Wednesday to restore relations with Cuba were akin to events in the administrations of Richard M. Nixon and Jimmy Carter that led to normalized ties with China after three decades of hostility, and in the administrations of George Bush and Bill Clinton that established relations with Vietnam after a horrendous war.
Both of those countries, still run by nominally communist governments that have remained part of the post-World War II geopolitical landscape, now have extensive and deeply rooted relations and friendly connections with the United States. Although Cuba is far smaller than China or Vietnam, the prospect of an improvement of ties with the US could have profound implications for better US relations throughout Latin America, a goal Obama first pledged to reach more than five years ago.
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