Making sense of the reestablishment of US-Cuba ties

I was one of the about 800 people who gathered on Monday morning inside and outside the new Cuban embassy in Washington to observe the flag-raising ceremony as the United Stated and Cuba officially re-established diplomatic ties.

It was a historic moment, but one was forced to think why the historical animosity had lasted 54 years and more than 20 years since the end of the Cold War. The crowds on Monday were celebrating the new relationship, but most of the banners they held called for an end to US economic and trade embargo on Cuba and the return of the Cuban territory of Guantanamo, now occupied by the US and the site of a US naval base, including a notorious detention center, to Havana.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez declared that the historic restoration of diplomatic ties will only make sense if the US lifts its sanctions against and returns Guantanamo to Cuba. The United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution every year since 1992 condemning the embargo, calling it a violation of the UN Charter and international law.