Americans rebuff PM Manning on Cuba agenda

A top American diplomat has said President Barack Obama's agenda for the 5th Summit of the Americas in Port of Spain later this month does not include discussions on Cuba and America's decades-old trade embargo on the communist state.

Ambassador Jeffrey Davidow, who is the special adviser to the White House for the summit, made the comment to the Trinidad Express Wednesday.

Trinidad and Tobago's Prime Minister Patrick Manning told reporters in Brazil last month that "there is a meeting of minds as to how best the question of Cuba should be handled". Manning has been pushing for Cuba to be admitted to the community, which comprises only democratically elected governments.

Although Cuba is a member of the Organization of American States (OAS) it is not welcome at the summit, which is sponsored by OAS member states.

The diplomat said, "We do not believe that Cuba is a topic of discussion at this summit...The policy of the United States on Cuba is that we hope that the Cuban people will someday be able to share the same kind of democracy that the people of Trinidad have."

Three days ago Cuban President Raul Castro accepted an invitation from Manning to visit Trinidad at a time that's convenient for him.

Davidow told the paper that the view from Washington is that Trinidad and Tobago is free to work on its own relationship with Cuba. However he said he believes "it would be very unfortunate if the topic of Cuba were to become the principal issue at this summit and detract attention from the other important things" such as energy, poverty and crime.

With regard to the invitation extended to the communist leader the U.S. has a hands-off policy. One U.S. official told the Express, "Trinidad and Tobago is a sovereign nation, and the prime minister is free to invite any guest to his country. We do not anticipate any confrontations at the summit and look forward to good discussions."

Davidow was emphatic that Cuba should be at the summit, noting that the summit is for the community of democratically elected heads of state. "I don't think anybody in Trinidad would argue that Raul Castro was democratically elected," he said.

The diplomat said, "Certainly, the American president is coming to the summit with the intention of meeting and talking with all of his democratically-elected colleagues in the hemisphere. It is not our intention to have difficulties with any of these countries or with their leaders."