William M. LeoGrande and Peter Kornbluh
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469626604
- eISBN:
- 9781469626628
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469626604.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Latin American History
History is being made in U.S.-Cuban relations. This book tells the real story behind the stunning December 17, 2014, announcement by President Obama and President Castro of their move to restore full ...
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History is being made in U.S.-Cuban relations. This book tells the real story behind the stunning December 17, 2014, announcement by President Obama and President Castro of their move to restore full diplomatic relations. It examines the ongoing efforts toward normalization in a new era of engagement. Challenging the conventional wisdom of perpetual conflict and aggression between the United States and Cuba since 1959, this book chronicles a surprising, untold history of bilateral efforts toward rapprochement and reconciliation. The text describes how, despite the intense political clamor surrounding efforts to improve relations with Havana, negotiations have been conducted by every presidential administration since Eisenhower’s through secret, back-channel diplomacy. From John F. Kennedy’s offering of an olive branch to Fidel Castro after the missile crisis, to Henry Kissinger’s top secret quest for normalization, to Barack Obama’s promise of a new approach, hundreds of formerly secret U.S. documents were uncovered and interviews with dozens of negotiators, intermediaries, and policy makers, including Fidel Castro and Jimmy Carter were conducted. The book reveals a fifty-year record of dialogue and negotiations, both open and furtive, that provides the historical foundation for the dramatic breakthrough in U.S.-Cuba ties.Less
History is being made in U.S.-Cuban relations. This book tells the real story behind the stunning December 17, 2014, announcement by President Obama and President Castro of their move to restore full diplomatic relations. It examines the ongoing efforts toward normalization in a new era of engagement. Challenging the conventional wisdom of perpetual conflict and aggression between the United States and Cuba since 1959, this book chronicles a surprising, untold history of bilateral efforts toward rapprochement and reconciliation. The text describes how, despite the intense political clamor surrounding efforts to improve relations with Havana, negotiations have been conducted by every presidential administration since Eisenhower’s through secret, back-channel diplomacy. From John F. Kennedy’s offering of an olive branch to Fidel Castro after the missile crisis, to Henry Kissinger’s top secret quest for normalization, to Barack Obama’s promise of a new approach, hundreds of formerly secret U.S. documents were uncovered and interviews with dozens of negotiators, intermediaries, and policy makers, including Fidel Castro and Jimmy Carter were conducted. The book reveals a fifty-year record of dialogue and negotiations, both open and furtive, that provides the historical foundation for the dramatic breakthrough in U.S.-Cuba ties.
