PANAMA CITY: The presidents of the United States and Cuba have spoken by phone for only the second time in more than 50 years, setting the stage for a historic encounter between the two leaders at a regional summit starting in Panama.

The call between President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro came on Wednesday, shortly before Obama departed Washington on his trip to Latin America and the Caribbean, the White House said.

Both Obama and Castro arrived in Panama City for the Summit of the Americas on Thursday evening, only minutes apart.

The two leaders have been working to restore diplomatic ties, a move that sent shockwaves through Latin America when Obama and Castro announced it in tandem in December.

In another major step on Thursday, the US and Cuba held their highest-level diplomatic meeting since cutting off relations more than half a century ago.

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez met behind closed doors in Panama City for a session that the State Department described as lengthy and productive.

The flurry of diplomacy was likely to reinvigorate ongoing efforts by the US and Cuba to start their relationship anew after five decades of American presidents either isolating or working to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro or his brother, Raul Castro.

Ahead of his arrival in Panama, Obama announced he was close to a decision about removing Cuba from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism, a major impediment to warmer ties as far as Havana is concerned.

The US has long since stopped actively accusing Cuba of supporting terrorism, and Obama has hinted at his willingness to take Cuba off the list ever since he and Castro announced a thaw in relations in December.

Yet Obama has stopped short of the formal decision amid indications that the White House was reluctant to grant Cuba’s request until other thorny issues — such as restrictions on US diplomats in Havana — were resolved.

“We don’t want to be imprisoned by the past,” Obama said Thursday in Jamaica, the first stop on his trip.

Published in Dawn, April 11th, 2015

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