The visit to Cuba to be paid by US President Barack Obama, the first president to do so in 80 años, will be a milestone in the history of bilateral relations.
The only president who visited the Island was Calvin Coolidge, in January, 1928, and after that the most prominent visit was that by Secretary of State, John Kerry, on August, 2015.
Prensa Latina posts below some of the most important events in the past eight months which marked highlights in the relations between the two countries:
December 17, 2014: Presidents Raúl Castro (Cuba) and Barack Obama (USA) address their nations simultaneously to announce the decision to resume diplomatic relations between the two nations.
2015
January 16: The US Departments of Treasury and Trade partially change the unilateral sanctions, but the laws underpinning the blockade remain intact.
January 21: The 28th round of migratory talks between Cuba and the United States is held.
January 22: Talks are held in Havana, presided over by the Director General for US Affairs of the Cuban Foreign Ministry, Josefina Vidal, and the US Assistant Secretary of the State Department for the Western Hemisphere, Roberta Jacobson.
March 31: Talks are held in Washington DC on Human Rights-related issues between Cuba and the United States.
April 11: Presidents Raul Castro and Barack Obama meet in Panama City during the 7th Summit of the Americas.
April 14: Obama notifies Congress the decision to erase Cuba from the list of countries that, according to Washington, sponsor terrorism.
May 21-22: The US Department of State, in Washington, hosts the third round of contacts Cuba-USA.
May 29: The Department of State officially announces the exclusion of Cuba from the unilateral list of coubntries that sponsor terrorism.
July 20: The Cuban flag is hoisted in the Cuban Embassy in Washington D.C., a few hours after the official resumption of diplomatic links, in a ceremony led by Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez.
August 14: US Secretary of State, John Kerry, visits Cuba to preside over the official reopening ceremony of the US Embassy in Havana.
September 11: The second meeting of the Cuba-USA Commission is held in Havana.
October 6-7: US Secretary of Trade, Penny Pritzker, visits Cuba to explain the regulations to modify specific aspects of the enforcement of the US blockade.
November 10: The second meeting of the Cuba-USA Commission is held in Washington.
November 11-14: US Secretary of Agriculture, Thomas Vilsack, pays a work visit to Cuba.
2016
January 27: New regulaciones of the US Departments of Trade and Treasure come into force with the purpose to «facilitate exports and make Cuba travel more flexible,» but the main body of the US blockade remains intact, including the ban on Cuba’s using US dollars in international transactions.
February 16: The Cuban Minister of Transportation, Adel Yzquierdo, and his US counterpart, Anthony R. Foxx, sign in Havana a memorandum of understanding to resume regular direct flights between the two countries.
February 15-18: Cuban Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment, Rodrigo Malmierca, pays a state visit to the United States.
February 17-18: The United States and Cuba hold in Washington their second regulatory dialog to pave the way for eventual trade links in the context of the US blockade still in force on the Island.
February 18: Director General for US Affairs of the Cuban Foreign Ministry, Josefina Vidal, confirms that President Obama will visit Cuba on March 21-22 and says that the Cuban Government and people will welcome him friendly. (Taken from Prensa Latina News Agency)
