HAVANA — Signaling its willingness to discuss improved relations with the Obama administration, Cuba on Tuesday granted three visiting members of the Congressional Black Caucus the first meeting with Fidel Castro by American officials since he fell ill in 2006.
The surprise meeting came a day after the full delegation of six representatives spent more than four hours talking privately with Cuban President Raul Castro, his first encounter with U.S. officials since formally replacing his brother as head of state nearly 14 months ago.
The sessions occurred as Washington discusses whether to warm up long-chilly relations with Cuba. President Barack Obama has ordered an assessment of U.S. policy toward the communist nation, and some members of Congress are pushing to lift a ban on Americans visiting the island.
Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., current head of the 42-member caucus, said at a news conference in Washington after the group’s return that lawmakers met for nearly two hours with Fidel Castro and found him “very healthy, very energetic, very clear-thinking.” She said they went to Fidel’s home, where they were greeted by his wife.
“We believe it is time to open dialogue and discussion with Cuba,” Lee said, noting that the group would present its findings to White House officials, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and the State Department.
“Cubans do want dialogue. They do want talks. They do want normal relations,” Lee said.
Rep. Laura Richardson, D-Calif., who also met Fidel Castro with Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill., said Castro “looked directly into our eyes” and asked how Cuba could help Obama change the course of U.S. foreign policy. Richardson said she had the impression that Fidel, 82, wants to see changes in U.S.-Cuba relations in his lifetime.
Greg Adams, a spokesman at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana, which Washington keeps there instead of an embassy, said he expected the Cuban government to release details during the nightly newscast on state television, though it was not clear whether photos or video of the encounter would be made public.
Fidel Castro has not been seen in public since undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in July 2006, and it was his first meeting in several years with American officials. Although he gave up his presidential duties after becoming ill, he remains an influential force in Cuba.
Lee’s group was in Cuba five days on a trip meant to encourage dialogue between the United States and Cuba.
Jeffrey Davidow, the White House adviser for this month’s Summit of the Americas, which Obama will attend, says the U.S. president has no plans to lift the 47-year-old trade embargo against Cuba.
But he says Obama soon will ease travel and financial restrictions affecting the island as his administration reviews its Cuban policy.
Lee’s delegation is sympathetic to Cuba, with most of its members openly praising the country’s communist government while decrying U.S. policy.
