[ For the first time in history, the president of Cuba sits down
with a US outlet to share his thoughts on the future of Cuban
socialism, the US blockade, and the economic difficulties facing the
island nation.]
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CUBAN PRESIDENT MIGUEL DÍAZ-CANEL SITS DOWN WITH THE NATION  
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D.D. Guttenplan and Katrina Vanden Heuvel
October 28, 2023
The Nation
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_ For the first time in history, the president of Cuba sits down with
a US outlet to share his thoughts on the future of Cuban socialism,
the US blockade, and the economic difficulties facing the island
nation. _

Miguel Díaz-Canel with D.D. Guttenplan and Katrina Vanden Heuvel,
Photo credit: The Nation

 

In late September, _The Nation_’s publisher, Katrina vanden
Heuvel, and its editor, D.D. Guttenplan, met with Cuban president
Miguel Díaz-Canel for an exclusive interview in New York.

It was the president’s first-ever interview in the United States.
They discussed the economic crisis facing his island nation, the
future of its socialist model, and the impact of continued hostility
from Washington.

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Watch Full Interview here [[link removed]]

D.D. GUTTENPLAN: YOU ARE THE FIRST CUBAN PRESIDENT BORN AFTER THE
REVOLUTION. WHAT DOES THE REVOLUTION MEAN TODAY?

MIGUEL DÍAZ-CANEL: First, I would like to thank you for doing this
interview, which is taking place on the occasion of this visit we have
made as part of the Cuban delegation to the 78th session of the United
Nations General Assembly. I thank you for allowing me to address the
American public, especially the millions of Latinos and Cubans who
live in the United States.

My generation was born with the Revolution. I was born in 1960 and
celebrated my first birthday the day after the victory at Playa Girón
[Bay of Pigs]. The birth and life of the revolution marked my
generation.

From a young age, we were motivated to get involved in all the
opportunities afforded us by the Revolution: to improve ourselves,
acquire knowledge, partake in culture, science, and sports, and enjoy
access to healthcare. We were also aware of the need to fulfill our
duties and not just be the recipient of rights but also address the
challenges the country was facing.

Of course, the Revolution has gone through different stages. My
childhood memories are of very complicated years. Later, we enjoyed a
period of greater economic ease in the ’70s and ´80s, when we had
closer relations with the socialist camp and, in particular, with the
Soviet Union. Then came the Special Period, which was another
challenging time.

From 2000 onward, the country entered a new economic growth phase
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the outlook improved. Today, however, we find ourselves in a situation
you have yourself described as “complex.” International relations
are complicated in such an uncertain world, especially with the
problems brought on by the pandemic.
As the representative of an entire generation that has come to assume
the responsibilities of political life and government, I feel an
enormous commitment to the Revolution, to the Cuban people, and to
Fidel [Castro] and Raúl [Castro], who have been visionary leaders to
whom we owe our gratitude and recognition.

We define ourselves as a continuity generation, although not a
generation of linear continuity. Continuity does not mean a lack of
transformation, but just the opposite: a dialectical continuity, so
that, as we transform, advance, and try to perfect our society as much
as possible, we do not abandon our convictions about building
socialism in our country with as much social justice as possible.
That is our lifelong commitment and vision. It requires great effort,
achievement, and altruism, and this demands much from us, especially
under difficult circumstances.

KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL: THERE ARE MANY YOUNG PEOPLE IN CUBA TODAY. IN
THAT CONTEXT, I WONDER HOW YOU ENVISION THE FUTURE OF THE CUBAN
ECONOMY. THE BLOCKADE IS BRUTAL, OF COURSE, YET THERE IS ALSO A SENSE
AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE THAT, WITHOUT CHANGE, THEY MAY NOT SEE THEIR FUTURE
IN CUBA.

MDC: There is something unique about the current moment. We have been
living under a blockade
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we were born. For example, my generation, that of the 1960s, was born
with the blockade. Our children and grandchildren— I have
grandchildren— have grown up under the sign of the blockade.
However, the blockade changed significantly in the second half of
2019. It became even harsher than before.

The new, harsher blockade was the result of two factors. One was the
application of more than 243 measures
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the Trump administration, which strengthened the blockade
by internationalizing
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and applying for the first time Chapter Three of the Helms-Burton Act
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In doing so, they cut off our access to foreign capital, international
convertible currencies and remittances
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North Americans could no longer visit
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and they placed financial pressure on banks and financial groups that
had business with Cuba.

And to top it all off, nine or ten days before leaving office in
January 2021, Trump included us on a bogus list
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says Cuba is a country that supports terrorism—which is absolutely
false. The whole world knows about Cuba’s humanist vocation and
about how we contribute to peace. We don’t send the military
anywhere; we send doctors. And even then, when we send our doctors
abroad to act in solidarity and provide services to other parts of the
world, the United States claims
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we are actually involved in human trafficking.

At the same time, just as the economic situation was worsening,
Covid-19 hit and greatly affected Cuba
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as it did everywhere. However, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the
United States government acted in a perverse manner and tightened the
blockade
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I single out the government and not the people of the United States
because we have deep respect and bonds of friendship with the people
of the United States.

I believe that the US government thought the Revolution would not
survive that moment. The pandemic
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at a very high level in Cuba and lasted for the better part of 2021.
When it began in 2020, we still didn’t have vaccines or even the
possibility of obtaining the vaccine.

Then, there was a breakdown
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the medical oxygen plant in Cuba. We ran out of oxygen and the US
government was putting pressure on companies in the Caribbean and
Central America to not supply us with oxygen. We also had to expand
the intensive care wards, and the US government responded
by pressuring
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that manufactured and marketed ventilators not to supply Cuba.

The situation was critical and came with a huge media campaign to
discredit the Cuban Revolution. We turned to our health system—an
efficient, free, and high-quality system that considers health a
right—and we turned to our scientists, especially younger ones. Our
scientists designed the ventilators and developed five vaccine
candidates
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of which three are today recognized for their efficacy. And that saved
the country. However, we emerged from the pandemic with many problems,
many of them accumulated since before 2019.

We have shortages of medicines
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and fuel
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We experience prolonged blackouts that harm the population and
directly impact people’s lives, particularly the youth. I believe
that our education process has impressed on the youth the importance
of the situation we are going through. Still, we, as a generation,
have an enormous challenge: to ensure that this momentary distancing
of the Cuban youth
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people born during the Special Period who have lived all these years
in a really difficult economic and social situation—does not lead to
an ideological rupture with the Revolution and with the country
itself.

It is true that there is a greater migration
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at other times. But that has occurred periodically
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history between Cuba and the United States. The most intense migratory
events have always been associated with periods in which the United
States has applied aggressive policies that have worsened the Cuban
economic situation. By means of the Cuban Adjustment Act
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1966] and other measures, the United States has favored illegal,
unsafe, and disorderly immigration of Cubans—while not extending
those policies to emigrants from other countries.

I learned a lot when we overcame the pandemic; I came to understand
the way Cubans resist as a form of creative resistance. To resist
creatively means not just to resist by staying in place but to move
forward by creating and taking advantage of the talent and strength of
our people to overcome adversities. One example of that were the
vaccines. Only five [other] countries in the world were able to
develop vaccines, and all of them are developed countries. Cuba is the
only developing country that was able to do that, and also with
impressive indicators of 0.76 mortality
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doses of vaccines per capita during the pandemic than any other
country.

We are one of 20 countries with over ninety percent
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the population completely vaccinated against Covid. And we were just
the second country in the world to apply vaccines to pediatric
populations
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years of age and older. These forms of creative resistance are now
being carried over into other areas of the economy and social life, to
overcome the blockade with our efforts, talent, and labor.

We are increasingly involving our youth in that effort and offering
them greater space for social participation. As a result, young people
can see that it is possible to have life goals that coincide with the
social project defended by the Revolution. Of course, there are those
who migrate, but the majority of young people are in Cuba, working in
the areas I’ve mentioned and others. They are the ones leading our
scientific development. Young people are involved in the country’s
main productive and economic activities. They are the ones who drive
the digital transformation of society, the standard-bearers for
social, political, and institutional communication. They are the ones
that convince us of the need to work for the continuity of the
Revolution.

DDG: I WANT TO PICK UP ON TWO THINGS THAT YOU SAID, MR. PRESIDENT.
ONE IS THE CYCLICAL NATURE OF WHAT YOU CALL THE EMIGRATION FROM CUBA
AND THE WAY IN WHICH THAT, IN YOUR VIEW, RESPONDS TO HARSHER
SANCTIONS. IF I UNDERSTAND YOUR ARGUMENT, THE US IMPOSES HARSHER
SANCTIONS, WHICH SENDS MORE PEOPLE OUT OF THE COUNTRY. DO YOU FEEL
THAT THAT’S SOMETHING THAT THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION CAN DO ANYTHING
ABOUT?

MDC: We don’t expect too much to change with the Biden
administration. We still have a diplomatic relationship with the
United States; there is an American embassy in Cuba and a Cuban
embassy in the United States. Relations were reestablished
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Obama’s term, which was a completely different policy from the one
implemented by Trump which Biden has maintained
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I highlight it because, even if it was a Republican president who
applied a policy of maximum pressure on Cuba, it is a Democratic
president who maintains that policy.

Through direct and indirect channels, we have let the Biden
administration know that we are willing to sit down to discuss our
problems, including immigration to the US. But that has to be done
from a position of equality, respect, and with no strings attached. We
have not received any response from the US. Therefore, we do not feel
like there is any intention on the part of this administration to work
with us.

However, we do aspire to maintain a civilized relationship between the
two countries, regardless of our ideological differences. Until that
moment comes, we will continue to work to overcome that situation by
ourselves. We are working to guarantee that young people are not
subject to deception, manipulation, or misrepresentation about what
kind of opportunities are available to them. Young people get caught
up in a completely disorderly and illegal migratory flow—falling
into human trafficking schemes
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they leave Cuba legally, only to become illegal in transit to the
United States.

There is a lot of talk about Cuban migration, especially young Cuban
migrants, but the fact is that migration affects all countries, and
those migrating are generally young, able-bodied people with dreams.

KVH: YOU SEE SMALL SHOPS, PRIVATE HOTELS, AND RESTAURANTS IN CUBA.
HOW FAR DO YOU BELIEVE YOU CAN GO WITH THIS PROCESS WITHIN THE
FRAMEWORK OF SOCIALISM?

MDC: We aspire to be a socialist economy guaranteeing the greatest
possible social justice. We have to build, strengthen, and develop
this socialist economy without forgetting the conditions of the world
in which we live, which is full of uncertainties and complexities, a
world where the gap between rich and poor is widening and where the
countries of the South have many disadvantages.

Still, we will never give up on our ideal of socialism. But how do we
do that with current conditions being what they are—including with
the blockade and problems internal to Cuba? We defend the socialist
economy as the way to achieve greater social justice, while we also
defend greater efficiency, greater autonomy, and better performance of
the socialist state enterprise, that is, the public enterprise within
our social economic model.

We have also opened
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non-state sector of the economy as a complement to the state sector.
On the one hand, there is a single entrepreneurial system, where there
is one actor—the state enterprise—which today has the ownership
and management of the main means of production; and there is a second
non-state actor that also contributes to the development of the
country, the national GDP, and absorbs part of the labor force.

Lately, we have witnessed a very interesting development: these
non-state enterprises are beginning to link up with the state sector.
For example, under blockade conditions, our state enterprises are
unable to use their productive capacity to the maximum. However, the
non-state sector, which has more possibilities to import despite the
blockade, links up with that state entity, and together, they develop
productive activities and services that ultimately benefit the people.

We aspire to give the Cuban people the prosperity that they deserve
for all the heroism they have shown in resisting the blockade for all
these years. How will we do that? With a concept of socialist
construction that includes a state sector and a private sector. It is
a challenge, but we are going to achieve it.

KVH: I HAD THE GOOD FORTUNE TO SEE FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER ALARCÓN A
WEEK BEFORE HE PASSED, AND WHAT HE WAS MOST ENTHRALLED ABOUT WERE THE
CHANGES IN THE REGION. JUST THE OTHER DAY, LULA WAS IN CUBA FOR A
MAJOR GATHERING. THE REGION SEEMS TO BE MOVING IN A MORE PINK AND LESS
RIGHT-WING DIRECTION. DOES THAT GIVE CUBA MORE SPACE TO MAKE CHANGES
OR PERHAPS EVEN RECREATE THE NONALIGNED MOVEMENT FOR A NEW ERA?

MDC: We defend the principle of Latin American and Caribbean
integration. We also defend the principle that Latin America and the
Caribbean should be a zone of peace. We have relations
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all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.

We cooperate and collaborate with several countries that have
requested our professional or technical services, among them
our medical brigades
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specialists in branches like engineering. We try to work to develop
trade relations. Also, when we participate in cooperation missions, we
learn about those countries, which helps our own development.

Latin America is a very favorable place for progressive movements
despite an ultra-right-wing current trying to undermine these
processes. We have strong relationships with Venezuela, Nicaragua,
Bolivia, Brazil, and Argentina, and those relations are being
strengthened. Brazil is almost a continent within Latin America and
one of the most important economies. We had extensive commercial and
bilateral exchange
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Lula’s and then Dilma’s governments. When these progressive
governments take power, they also open up new possibilities for our
country.

Cuba sponsored
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peace process in Colombia, which has helped and contributed to peace
throughout the whole continent. The Final Agreement to that peace
process was signed in Havana a few years ago. Cuba has developed a
coherent foreign policy based on cooperation and collaboration with
other countries, of sharing what we have in a very altruistic way.
When Covid hit, we shared our vaccines to the Caribbean and Latin
American countries that asked for them.

DDG: MR. PRESIDENT, YOU SPOKE ABOUT CUBANS IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES. OF
COURSE, WE ALL KNOW THE LONG, DISTINGUISHED HISTORY OF CUBAN DOCTORS
PROVIDING HEALTH SERVICES AROUND THE WORLD. BUT SOME OF US IN THE US
WERE SURPRISED BY THE RECENT HEADLINES ABOUT CUBANS IN UKRAINE BEING
RECRUITED TO FIGHT. I WONDER IF YOU COULD EXPLAIN YOUR GOVERNMENT’S
RESPONSE TO THE SITUATION.

MDC: First of all, our position regarding the war in Ukraine is that
we are a country of peace. We uphold international law and the United
Nations Charter. We do not like wars. We do not celebrate wars, and we
do not support wars. It hurts us when human lives are lost on one side
or the other, and we believe that dialogue and diplomatic solutions
should be sought to end this war.

We are not part of the war in Ukraine, but we discovered through our
investigations that an illegal network
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hiring Cubans living in Russia and some living in Cuba to fight on the
Russian side. Our Penal Code prohibits mercenaries, and we do consider
this a case of mercenarism as well as human trafficking. Therefore,
when we gathered all the evidence from that investigation, we informed
the involved parties and publicly reported what had happened. Thanks
to our close relations with Russia, both parties have been able to
work in order to eliminate the illegal trafficking of people that
turns them into mercenaries. I can certify that Cuba is not part of
the war and that if we again discover an illegal trafficking ring like
the one we saw, we would report it and act to stop it.

KVH: IN THE INTEREST OF CLARITY ABOUT CUBA’S POSITION ON THE
UKRAINE WAR, HAVE YOU TRIED TO PLAY A ROLE IN ANY OFFER OF CEASE-FIRE?
WHAT IS THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT’S POSITION ON THE UKRAINE WAR?

MDC: We insist on using all international mechanisms and spaces for
dialogue—there must be a solution through dialogue and diplomatic
relations. The problem is that there are efforts to distort reality
and impose a warped framework. For us, the United States government
motivated the war by not listening to Russia’s grievances and
warnings about the danger posed by the extension of NATO’s borders
towards Russia. The United States, in my opinion, manipulated the
situation. The conflict also involved many European countries, to the
point that it is not a war between Ukraine and Russia but a
NATO-Russia conflict.

Who is paying for this war? It comes from the budgets of the countries
involved in the war, so the inhabitants of those countries are the
ones paying. But it also harms those who are uninvolved but still see
the consequences of this war. Problems with grain exports and food
markets have shown how this impacts the world. We object to the war,
as well, based on our humanist convictions that human lives are being
sacrificed in the conflict.

But we believe that the United States has an enormous responsibility
in this conflict. They have been able to distort the true essence of
the war and then tried to appear as if they were the ones who were in
the correct position. I believe that the correct response to end the
war is by diplomatic means. There have to be objective guarantees of
security in place for all the parties. I believe that with
intelligence and sensitivity, we could all support the search for a
solution rather than stoking the war and adding fuel to the flames of
conflict.

DDG: YOU SPOKE EARLIER OF SOCIALIST CONSTRUCTION. I WANT TO PUSH YOU
A LITTLE BIT ON THE QUESTION ABOUT WHAT BALANCE YOU SEE IN THE FUTURE
BETWEEN THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND THE STATE. DURING THE SPECIAL PERIOD,
THE SUBSIDY FROM THE SOVIET UNION WAS ESSENTIALLY CUT OFF, AND THAT
WAS VERY DIFFICULT FOR THE PEOPLE OF CUBA, PARTICULARLY BECAUSE OF THE
BLOCKADE. HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM OF SOCIALIST CONSTRUCTION HAS NOT BEEN
SOLVED IN CUBA, NOR HAS IT IN CHINA, WHERE THEY HAD TO EXPAND THE
PRIVATE SECTOR IN ORDER TO RAISE THE LEVEL OF DAILY LIFE. WHAT IS THE
BALANCE YOU AIM FOR BETWEEN THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND THE STATE GOING
FORWARD?

MDC: The fact that there is a private sector in a socialist economy
does not negate socialism. Even the Marxist classics—or Lenin’s
own practice within the Soviet revolution—conceived that there are
periods of transition where a private sector will be present within
the socialist construction. Recognizing a private sector does not in
any way mean that we are renouncing socialism. Why? Because the
greatest quantity and volume of the fundamental means of production
are still in the hands of the state.

Those means of production can be managed in a combination of state and
non-state forms. For example, in Cuba, more than 80 percent
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the land is state-owned. However, approximately 80 percent of our land
has been managed for years by private farmer cooperatives
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This does not mean that we have stopped building socialism.

Where the economy is concerned, we feel dissatisfied with certain
aspects of the current economic performance. But which has been the
reality of the Cuban economy? A war economy that has had to face a
blockade from the most powerful country in the world. We have to see
what we would have achieved without the blockade. Of course, we also
try to find ways to improve ourselves. When I say I am dissatisfied
with the performance of the Cuban economy, I am referring to the fact
that we still cannot produce the goods and services that would give
our people full prosperity. But that same war economy is what has
guaranteed free and high-quality state-subsidized healthcare and
education, as well as access to culture and sports free of charge.
Cuban professionals, even those who emigrate, are competitive in the
labor markets in capitalist countries.

Cuba has an incredible system of social care that leaves no one behind
or unprotected. One might ask: If people receive it for free,
doesn’t that cost money to the state? And who covers these state
expenses? Those expenses are covered by an economy that, on the one
hand, has been hit hard by the blockade, but, on the other hand, has
made major social achievements that capitalist and more developed
countries have never done. Despite the tightening of the blockade,
Cuba’s health and education indicators can be compared with those of
any developed country in the world.

Where do we go next? We have to be less dependent on international
circumstances. That is why we are betting on the creative resistance
of the Cuban people, using our own effort and talent. We are working
on an economic and social development model that will include a
macroeconomic stabilization plan to deal with inflation, the
distortions we have in the currency exchange market, and in prices.

We are betting on science and innovation as pillars of government
administration. Look at what we did during the pandemic. We decided
that, in order to assert sovereignty, we needed Cuban vaccines, so we
designed a governance system based on science and innovation. That
idea was tested during Covid-19, and now we have extended it to other
areas of the economy.

One of those areas is food sovereignty. We are focusing on science and
innovation to boost food production so that Cuba does not have to
import or depend on external sources for food. We are also changing
the energy matrix of the country so that there is less dependence on
fossil fuels and a greater use of renewable energy sources. We aspire
to have more than 24 percent of energy generated by renewable sources
by 2030.

Amid difficult circumstances, we are developing social programs aiming
to help populations and families get out of vulnerable situations. We
are also embarking on a process of digital transformation. All these
actions combined will deliver a much more stable present and future.

KVH: ABOUT THE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION, WHERE IS CUBA IN YOUR VIEW IN
TERMS OF ACCESS TO THE INTERNET? MY UNDERSTANDING WAS THAT THERE WAS A
DEAL WITH US AND EUROPEAN COMPANIES THAT FELL THROUGH, HALTING THE
MOVEMENT TOWARD DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION. HOW DO PEOPLE GET THEIR MEDIA?
DO YOU GET A BRIEFING EVERY MORNING? I’M CURIOUS AS TO WHAT MEDIA
YOU LOOK AT.

MDC: I’m very active on Twitter [[link removed]].
I think I have more followers than anyone else in Cuba, although I’m
not certain.

KVH: HOW MANY FOLLOWERS?

MDC: They tell me I have around 760,000 followers on Twitter. We have
started a project for the digitalization of society, focusing on two
fundamental areas. The first is to develop digital platforms like
e-commerce and e-government so that there would be a greater
interconnection between the population, government institutions, and
services, with greater democratic participation of the population. We
are also working on the legal framework around electronic commerce.
The blockade has an impact on this because, in order to move toward a
digital society, you need financial resources and technology. So, we
have to create the foundation for our digital infrastructure
independently.

With the help of China, we were able to move toward the digitalization
of television. As far as the Internet is concerned, the last few years
have seen important advances. Already, more than 7 million Cubans have
access to the Internet through their cell phones. In Cuba, and
especially among the youth, it is very common to see everyone
connected and actively working on social networks, even though, as a
result of the blockade, there are sites and platforms that are denied
to us.

There are times when one tries to update an application or enter a
site, or a scientist wants to visit a research database, and they
receive a message saying, “Your country does not have access to this
site.” But we are making progress. We have computer science programs
in all the universities throughout the country. We have also developed
a Cuban applications store called Apklis, and we are also developing
our own Cuban app systems. We have an operating system developed by
the Universidad de las Ciencias Informáticas [University of Computer
Science], which is being used in laptops, tablets, and cell phones
that we are developing through a joint project with China.

Teams of young Cubans have participated in international computer
programming events and have obtained outstanding results. We have to
keep moving down this path of computerization for the following
reason: in Cuba, there is a smaller economically active population,
and that group has to support a larger economically inactive
population because our population is aging at the same time that life
expectancy has increased due to our social programs.

In other words, even though we are an underdeveloped country, we have
a demographic dynamic typical of developed countries; with fewer
people directly active in production and services, we have to achieve
more efficient results, and the way to do so is through
computerization, digital transformation, and automation. We have
developed several popular programs to accomplish these goals. For
example, there is a Young Computer Club program: institutions where
children from a very young age are introduced to computers and other
communication technologies. There are even courses for senior citizens
so that they are not excluded from the whole process of digital
transformation.

Of course, Cubans are also active on social networks. I believe social
networks can be an instrument by means of which knowledge can be
managed, which is very important for humanity. We aspire to create a
country where people are not distinguished by their material
possessions, but by their spirituality and by what they can contribute
to society and culture. What I condemn about social networks are their
manifestations of vulgarity, banality, and the type of online bullying
that does so much harm, especially among young people.

I believe that the world also needs a more comprehensive and united
approach regarding Internet governance. Cybersecurity issues are now
an important issue in the world, and Cuba is developing its own
cybersecurity platforms. Not to mention, the challenges of artificial
intelligence are not only technological in nature but also bring
important social and ethical consequences. We have to achieve a form
of global governance of the Internet. We need to build a world that is
emancipatory and inclusive, where the virtual and the physical are
less distant and where the Internet can help people find answers to
their problems.

DDG: ON THE SUBJECT OF CULTURE, EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT CUBA IS A
CULTURAL POWERHOUSE IN MUSIC, LITERATURE, AND DANCE. GIVEN THAT
DIGITAL CULTURE DOESN’T RESPECT BORDERS, DO YOU SEE ANY DIFFERENCE
OR CHANGE IN YOUR GOVERNMENT’S ATTITUDE TOWARDS CUBANS WHO PERHAPS
ARE NO LONGER LIVING IN CUBA BUT STILL FEEL VERY PROUDLY CUBAN?

MDC: This is the second time I have been in the United States—once
five years ago, and now this time. Both times, I have come to
participate in sessions of the United Nations General Assembly. During
these visits, we have always found some room to meet with
representatives of American culture. Yesterday afternoon, for example,
in this very place, we had one of those meetings among American
artists and academics, and Cuban artists based in Cuba and in the
United States.

Like you, I have experienced the harmony that is created when Cuban
and American musicians can share the stage. We have experienced it at
jazz festivals in Havana, which always close with an orchestra
combining Cuban and American musicians. The Cubans bring to the
original strengths of American jazz and its virtuosity a certain
latinidad.

Those are the kind of moments when one reaches a new level of
spiritual well-being. Today, culture is one of the areas where bridges
and not walls can be built between Cuba and the United States. Through
cultural exchange, borders are broken down and our people are united.
Our people can share the values of their history and culture.

A few years ago, during Obama’s time, the Kennedy Center held an
exhibition of Cuban culture in Washington, D.C. That was a great
event. Here, our artists felt very comfortable. We wanted to bring
American artists to Cuba through a Kennedy Center project, but
everything fell through with Trump’s restrictions. Still many
contacts are maintained. For example, we spent time yesterday with
some important Cuban musicians who have lived in the United States for
many years. They have not abandoned their relationship with their
country, and we feel that their success is also the success of Cuban
culture. .

KVH: IS THERE AN ONGOING DIALOGUE WITH THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION? AND
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IF BIDEN IS REELECTED, IN TERMS OF US AND CUBAN
RELATIONS?

MDC: You would have to ask Biden. Right now, there are diplomatic
relations. We have conversations on some issues, but we have not seen
a willingness on the part of the Biden administration to establish a
different relationship with Cuba.

And we continue to insist on our vision. We are not going to give up
on socialist construction. But we want a civilized, normal
relationship between Cuba and the United States. However, in order to
build that relationship, we have to sit down to talk. We need to
evaluate all the issues on which we have different opinions and those
on which we agree, and those on which we have no agreement, try to
make progress. I believe that this would lead to a better relationship
and greater possibilities and potential for our people. But we see no
signs at the moment that this is the attitude held by the government
of the United States.

KVH: ONE LAST QUESTION: HAVE YOU SEEN _BARBIE_ OR _OPPENHEIMER_? 

MDC: I haven’t seen _Oppenheimer_, but I’ve been recommended to
see it, and I will soon. I’m interested in seeing _Oppenheimer_.
I’m less interested in seeing _Barbie_. It seems to me
that _Barbie_ is very, very light.

_[D.D. GUTTENPLAN is editor of The Nation._

_KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL is editorial director and publisher of The
Nation, America’s leading source of progressive politics and
culture. She served as editor of the magazine from 1995 to 2019.]_

_Copyright c 2023 The Nation. Reprinted with permission. May not be
reprinted without permission
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* Cuba
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* Miguel Diaz-Canel
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* socialism
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* 21st Century Socialism
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* Cuba blockade
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* Cuban socialism
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* Cuban economy
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* Cuban emigres
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* Cuban migration
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* coronavirus pandemic
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* COVID-19
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* Helms-Burton
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* Trump Administration
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* Biden Administration
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* U.S. foreign policy
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* Cuban healthcare
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* Cuban doctors
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* Cuban youth
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