Obama Shakes Hands With Raul Castro at Mandela Memorial Service
Obama Shakes Hands With Raul Castro at Mandela Memorial Service
AS/COA’s Christopher Sabatini analyzes the significance of President Barack Obama’s handshake with Cuba’s President Raul Castro.
The two greeted each other as Obama made his way through the seating area for dignitaries at the stadium in Johannesburg where the event was held. It was caught by the broadcast feed for the memorial service.
A short time later, Obama lauded Mandela’s example of reconciling with enemies as he criticized regimes that repress freedom.
“It’s a sign of how incredibly frozen in time and perverse our relations with Cuba have been that a mere handshake between two heads of state would generate this much interest,” said Christopher Sabatini, senior director of policy at the Council of Americas, a business-oriented research organization in New York.....
Still, there are hurdles to overcome between the U.S. and Cuba. The White House Dec. 3 reinforced its call on Cuba to release American subcontractor Alan Gross, a subcontractor for the U.S. Agency for International Development who was arrested by Cuban authorities on spy charges in 2009 and remains jailed.
“The Castro government has always wanted to be dealt with with respect, and this is a sign of extending a hand, of saying ‘We’ll treat you as a head of state,’” Sabatini said.
It doesn’t mean diplomatic relations will begin tomorrow given “a legacy of distrust” between the two nations, he said....
