The Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel announced this Friday that the Government is preparing new measures related to the policy towards Cubans residing abroad.
He stated that the goal is to facilitate their participation in the country's economic development and to reduce bureaucratic obstacles.
During statements to the official press, Díaz-Canel explained that in the past year there has been an "intense" activity of contact with the Cuban diaspora through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Foreign Trade. "There has been a lot of connection," he noted.
The leader stated that multiple meetings have been held with Cubans in various countries and regions around the world, where they have presented proposals to further contribute to the national economy.
"Several meetings have taken place in various countries, as well as regionally, where they have raised and explained concerns, limitations, aspirations, have made proposals, and highlighted what they consider obstacles to being able to contribute more in the country," he stated.
Those interventions were recorded in a file that was later analyzed by the political leadership of the regime. "We created a dossier of all those statements," Díaz-Canel affirmed.
In addition to the regional meetings, sectoral meetings have been held with Cuban professionals living abroad. “If there is an industrial event or a business fair involving Cubans from that sector, we organize meetings. And that has also provided us with a lot of information on the matter,” he stated.
The leader emphasized that the Political Bureau and the Government discussed a package of measures that, according to him, would address most of the demands raised by the diaspora.
“I believe that the new measures to be announced will address nearly all the concerns raised by Cubans living abroad and will greatly facilitate their presence and participation in the country’s economic development program,” he said.
Díaz-Canel announced that the details of these decisions will be publicly presented next Monday by the Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Trade, Óscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, in a televised appearance.
"We have built a platform that allows for more active participation, less burdened by bureaucracy and procedure, more flexible, even with some very innovative features that I will not reveal just yet," he expressed.
After weeks of denying negotiations with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Cuban leader confirmed that officials from the island have been in talks with representatives of the United States government to try to resolve bilateral differences through dialogue.
He explained that those contacts have been conducted at the highest political level and assured that he and Raúl Castro have been at the forefront of the negotiations.
“Led by the Army General as the historic leader of our revolution and by me, in coordination with the highest structure of the party, the state, and the government,” he stated.
The public acknowledgment of these contacts marks a significant shift from the official position maintained by the Cuban government for weeks regarding relations with Washington.
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