ON September 17, 2009 talks began between
representatives of Cuba and the United States to
normalize direct mail between the two countries. The
Cuban delegation was headed by Josefina Vial
Ferreiro, director of the North American Department
of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the U.S.
delegation by Bisa Williams, deputy assistant
secretary for Western Hemisphere affairs.
During the talks, Cuba informed the U.S. side of
its assessment of the current overall situation of
postal service between Cuba and the United States
and presented its proposals for solving existing
difficulties in this area. The Cuban delegation also
covered other issues that have to be taken into
account in order to restore a direct mail between
the two countries, including mail transportation and
security and payment methods for that service.
The head of the Cuban delegation stated: "…We are
satisfied with the development of this first
meeting, which made it possible to look at issues
that are complicating the normalization of mail
service between Cuba and the United States, and to
assess a group of specific proposals directed at
overcoming these obstacles." She described as wide-ranging
and useful the talks between postal officials from
the two countries aimed at identifying areas that
need to be worked on in order to adopt bilateral
agreements on mail service.
During the talks, the Cuban delegation
particularly emphasized the importance of
eliminating discriminatory restrictions stemming
from the U.S. blockade policy toward Cuba, which
would permit the reestablishment of a direct mail
service between the two countries on the basis of
the principles and regulations established by the
Universal Postal Union, of which both states are
members.
The two delegations agreed on the need for follow-up
talks in the next few months.
The Cuban delegation also included Silvia
Munárriz Mon, deputy minister of Informatics and
Communications; and Eliecer Blanco Prieto, president
of the Correos de Cuba enterprise, as well as other
officials.
