US, Cuba spar over migration policy at historic Havana talks

US, Cuba spar over migration policy at historic Havana talks
BY BRADLEY KLAPPER AND MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN ASSOCIATED PRESS
01/22/2015 2:12 AM 01/22/2015 2:12 AM

HAVANA
The United States said Wednesday it dispatched additional ships to the
Florida Straits to halt Cuban rafters but rebuffed demands for broader
changes to U.S. migration rules that dominated the first day of talks
between Cuban officials and the highest-ranking U.S. delegation to the
island in more than three decades.

Cuba urged the U.S. to end immigration privileges that grant virtually
automatic legal residency to any Cuban who touches U.S. soil. Its
government blames the Cold War policy for luring tens of thousands of
Cubans a year to make perilous journeys by sea and land to try to reach
the United States. Still, many Cubans are worried the elimination of the
rules would take away their chance to have a better life in the U.S.

"I don't want them to get rid of it," said Mile Nieves, a 42-year-old
Havana resident. "I've got my whole family there and I'm desperate to
leave."

U.S. officials reported a spike in the number of rafters attempting to
reach Florida after the Dec. 17 announcement that the countries would
move to normalize ties. Those numbers appear to have slowed in recent days.

In Washington, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson issued a
statement saying additional Coast Guard cutters have been deployed to
stop Cuban and Haitian migrants from reaching the United States by boat.

America's "wet foot, dry foot" approach, which generally shields Cubans
from deportation if they touch U.S. land, remains in effect, Johnson
said. But he stressed that those trying to come by sea would most likely
be interdicted and returned.

"Cuba wants a normal relationship with the U.S., in the broadest sense
but also in the area of migration," said Cuba's head of North American
affairs, Josefina Vidal. She called for the U.S. to end "exceptional
treatment that no other citizens in the world receive, causing an
irregular situation in the flow of migrants."

American officials instead pressed Cuba to take back tens of thousands
of its nationals whom U.S. authorities want to deport because they have
been convicted of crimes. No progress was made on that issue, according
to an official present in the meeting. The official wasn't authorized to
speak on the matter and demanded anonymity.

The talks continue Thursday with broader negotiations on how the U.S.
and Cuba can end a half-century of enmity — as promised last month by
Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro. The nations hope to
re-establish embassies and post ambassadors to each other's capitals in
the coming months.

After meeting with the Cubans for more than three hours, State
Department officials said the annual migration talks had been easier
than usual because the two sides felt comfortable focusing almost
entirely on migration. In past years, the migration talks served as a
pretext for a wider range of bilateral disagreements.

"Today's discussions prove that despite clear differences that remain
between our countries, the United States and Cuba can find opportunities
to advance our mutual, shared interests as well as engage in respectful
and thoughtful dialogue," said the State Department's Alex Lee, who
headed the U.S. delegation ahead of Wednesday afternoon's arrival of
Roberta Jacobson.

Jacobson is the top American diplomat for Latin America and most senior
U.S. official to visit Cuba in more than three decades.

Lt. Cmdr. Gabe Somma, spokesman for the Coast Guard's 7th District in
Miami, said "aggressively" stepped-up patrols have eased the spike in
rafters seen immediately after the twin announcements last month by
Castro and Obama.

"We have seen a slowdown in the last two weeks," Somma said. He wouldn't
say how many more U.S. boats were patrolling the Florida Straits and
Caribbean.

The Havana talks were occurring hours after Obama said U.S. efforts to
loosen the five-decade trade embargo have "the potential to end a legacy
of mistrust in our hemisphere" and are a "new hope for the future in Cuba."

Source: US, Cuba spar over migration policy at historic Havana talks |
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http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article7850502.html