Cuba hosts first US business conference in years and seeks investment

A few dozen American businessmen braved harsh US sanctions and Cuba’s worst economic crisis in decades to attend a conference in Havana on Wednesday, focusing on the new private sector and aimed at increasing engagement among enemy countries of the Cold War era.

The Cuban Chamber of Commerce and Washington-based consultancy FocusCuba, which are hosting the meeting, said the three-day event was the first since at least 2018, when former US President Donald Trump imposed new sanctions on the country. decades-old trade embargo.

The Cuban and US delegations criticized the sanctions, most of which are still in effect, and called on US President Joe Biden to abandon his predecessor’s policies.

The president of the Cuban Chamber of Commerce, Antonio Luis Carricarte, called the meeting at the famous Hotel Nacional a “historic day”, praising the persistence of the representatives present from both sides of the Straits of Florida.

During a brief thaw in relations under former President Barack Obama, hundreds of US companies arrived to explore opportunities in the nearly forbidden communist island nation.

The US entrepreneurs in attendance represent a variety of industries, from food services to online shopping, digital money transfers, transportation and finance.

“I think participants are looking for clarity in terms of what is possible with the Cuban side investing in this new private sector, although any deals must also be approved by US regulators,” Phil Peters, founder of FocusCuba, told Reuters. “We need more clarity there too.”

The Biden administration has loosened some restrictions on Cuba on remittances, tourism and migration. It also expressed interest in supporting Cuba’s private sector.