President Obama’s Trip to Cuba and Argentina: An Inter-American Dialogue Press Roundtable
President Obama’s trip to Cuba will mark an historic moment: he will be the first sitting US president to visit the island in almost a century. This visit highlights Obama’s efforts to chart a new course for bilateral relations and fully secure the progress that has already made toward normalization. He will also be seeking to encourage the Cuban government toward greater political and economic opening and reassure ordinary Cubans of the US commitment to rebuilding constructive ties to Cuba.
In Argentina, Latin America’s third largest economy, Obama will express his support for new president Mauricio Macri in his efforts to overcome present economic difficulties and restore more productive ties with the US. The visit will take place weeks after Macri’s government reached a preliminary agreement with holders of defaulted debt. If approved, this deal will end a 14-year-long legal dispute that has isolated the country from the international financial system. For Obama, visiting Buenos Aires offers a chance to restore bilateral relations with Argentina –which have been tense for the past decade- and recognize the emergence of new, more pragmatic leaders in the region.
The discussion will focus on the objectives and realistic expectations for Obama’s trip, and how it could affect US engagement with Latin America as a whole. Introductory remarks will be followed by a wide-ranging exchange with members of the press corps.
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Featuring Jorge I. DomínguezHarvard University Inter-American Dialogue |
Additional Commentary Michael Shifter
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