American flag returns to US embassy in Cuba after 54 years

While many disagree with the U.S. opening diplomatic relations with Cuba, some Cuban Americans are celebrating the U.S. flag flying again in the country.

The U.S. flag is raised at the reopening ceremony of the embassy in Havana, Cuba.

The US flag was presented in the ceremony by the same US marines who lowered it when the embassy closed in 1961.

In a historic moment, the US raised its national flag at its new Embassy in Cuba after a gap of over five decades, marking the end of one of the last vestige of the Cold War. Instead, the State Department demanded little and bowed to mandates that embassy personnel face rigid constraints in their access to the Cuban people. Cuba’s future, he said, “is for Cubans to shape”.

The criticism adds to the chorus of GOP opposition to the Obama administration’s restoration of diplomatic ties with Cuba, which took a major symbolic step on Friday.

Josefina Vidal, Cuba’s lead negotiator in talks on restoring diplomatic relations, told Reuters that Cuba’s sovereignty was not negotiable and Cuba has no interest in placating its enemies in the United States.

There has already been a significant increase in U.S. visitors since December, much to the delight of Cuba’s privately run tourist sector.

Mr Kerry said that the current administration wanted to lift the trade embargo now in place on the island, though this is something the Republican-controlled US Congress has so far stopped from happening.

There were mixed feelings today regarding the official reopening of the US embassy in the Cuban capital and how this might play out in practical terms in the coming weeks and months.

While clearly the Cuban government won’t change overnight, Zarate said the question is, “can we deluge it with American influence and commerce, and can that [have an] impact as a younger demographic takes over in the country?”

He planned to meet with dissidents at a private reception later in the day.

“As two people who are no longer enemies or rivals, but neighbors”, he said in English and Spanish, it is “time to unfurl our flags, raise them up and let the world know that we wish each other well”.

“It is shameful that on the grounds of our embassy in Havana, the Cuban regime can dictate to the US government who may or may not attend this ceremony”, Bob Menendez, a Cuban-American senator from New Jersey, said in a statement.

They are now retired and in their late 70s.

President Barack Obama wants to make it easier for Americans to travel to Cuba and transact business there.

Cuban-American poet, and South Florida native, Richard Blanco is also going to participate in the ceremony.

Cubans are generally pleased with the rapprochement between Havana and Washington but hold mixed opinions about the extent to which it might improve their lives.