AS/COA Cuba Working Group Supports U.S. Engagement with Cuba
AS/COA Cuba Working Group Supports U.S. Engagement with Cuba
Stronger engagement with the island has advanced U.S. national interests and values, created opportunities for American companies, and supported the Cuban people.
New York, June 14, 2017—Americas Society and Council of the Americas strongly encourage the U.S. administration to continue normalizing bilateral relations with Cuba. Greater engagement with the island has advanced U.S. national interests and values, created opportunities for U.S. companies, and supported the Cuban people.
“In our numerous business delegations to Havana, we have witnessed the positive effects of greater U.S. diplomatic and commercial engagement with Cuba. Greater commerce, travel, and trade has impacted the lives of everyday Cubans and the island’s growing private sector, granting them unprecedented economic agency and access to information. Rolling back the policy of engagement will hurt the very people it aims to support,” said AS/COA Policy Senior Director and Cuba Working Group head Alana Tummino. “Equally important, the opening has provided an opportunity for U.S. companies to expand their operations in sectors such as technology and telecommunications, remittances, agriculture, travel, and more. This bolsters our U.S. economy and allows U.S. companies to enter the market alongside businesses from the rest of the world. These personal, cultural, and commercial relationships 90 miles off our shore are our best bet for creating a more open society.”
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Americas Society is the premier organization dedicated to education, debate and dialogue in the Americas. Established by David Rockefeller in 1965, our mission is to foster an understanding of the contemporary political, social and economic issues confronting Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada, and to increase public awareness and appreciation of the diverse cultural heritage of the Americas and the importance of the inter-American relationship.
Council of the Americas is the premier international business organization whose members share a common commitment to economic and social development, open markets, the rule of law, and democracy throughout the Western Hemisphere.
AS/COA's Cuba Working Group (CWG) includes corporate leaders from the worlds of banking, financial services, energy, telecommunications, hospitality, pharmaceuticals, and law. Working group meetings look at the steps companies can take under current U.S. restrictions to pre-position themselves for future investment. This effort has produced a series of papers on regulations and laws affecting U.S. business activity under the U.S. embargo and in Cuba.
