Washington, Havana sit down to restore relations

Cuba and the highest-level US delegation to visit in 35 years began talks on Wednesday aimed at restoring diplomatic ties and eventually normalizing relations between two adversaries who have been locked in Cold War-era hostilities.

The two days of meetings are the first since US President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced on Dec 17 they had reached a historic breakthrough after 18 months of secret negotiations.

Obama has set the US on a path toward removing economic sanctions and Washington's 53-year-old trade embargo against the communist-ruled island, telling US Congress in his annual State of the Union address on Tuesday that "we are ending a policy that was long past its expiration date".