14 June 2007, 15:39 CET
(BRUSSELS) - EU member states have failed to agree to normalise ties
with Cuba, opting instead to extend an suspension of sanctions on the
communist Caribbean island, European diplomats said Thursday.
A "large number" of the 27 member states, led by Spain which normalised
its relations with Havana in April, are in favour of definitively
dropping the sanctions which were introduced in 2003 but suspended two
years later.
But objections continue to be voiced, notably from Britain, the Czech
Republic and Sweden which believe normalisation should not take place
without democratic reforms in Cuba, the diplomats said.
Therefore a proposal put forward by the German EU presidency on
Wednesday to normalise ties was rejected at a meeting of EU diplomats
ahead of a foreign ministers' meeting in Luxembourg on Monday, they added.
The European Union imposed political and diplomatic sanctions on Cuba
after Fidel Castro's regime sentenced 75 dissidents to lengthy prison
terms and executed three young Cubans who had tried to flee to the
United States by boat.
The sanctions -- which notably included restrictions on bilateral
government visits -- were suspended in January 2005 at Spain's
initiative, following the release of several dissidents.
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