The U.S. & Cuba: 10 years after Washington and Havana’s historic détente

December 17, 2024 marks the 10th anniversary of one of the most significant and surprising achievements in the contemporary history of U.S. foreign policy: a rapprochement between the United States and Cuba. On that day, Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro surprised the world by announcing "a new chapter" of normalized relations. For over two years Obama's policy of engagement allowed hundreds of thousands of U.S. travelers to freely visit the island, with a quantifiable impact on the growth of Cuba's private sector and development of Cuba's economy.

Ten years later, Cuba is in the midst of a spreading humanitarian crisis, with critical shortages of food, medicine, fuel, and electricity, and U.S. policy seems poised toward past practices of hostility—which may very well intensify with a new administration. What happened? How did the promise and hopes of positive engagement a decade ago devolve into the crisis of today? Join Peter Kornbluhand William LeoGrande (co-authors of the award winning book, Back Channel to Cuba: The Hidden History of Negotiations between Washington and Havana) for this special forum will examine those questions and address the present and future challenge of U.S. policy toward Cuba.

Cosponsored with the International Relations Council of Kansas City, World Affairs Council Dallas/Fort Worth, World Affairs Council of Orange County, World Affairs Council of San Antonio, and World Affairs Council of Seattle

About the Speakers

Dr. William LeoGrande is professor of Government at American University and a specialist in U.S. foreign policy toward Latin America, He has been a frequent adviser to government and private sector agencies and is an international affairs fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Peter Kornbluh directs the Cuba Documentation Project at the Washington D.C. research center, The National Security Archive. He has led the effort to obtain the declassification of U.S. government records on major episodes of both conflict and dialogue in the history of U.S.-Cuba bilateral ties, including on the Bay of Pigs, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the top secret efforts by John Kennedy, Henry Kissinger, Jimmy Carter, and William Clinton to engage in a dialogue with Cuba toward better relations.

LeoGrande and Kornbluh are co-authors of a forthcoming article in Foreign Policy on the current and urgent relevance of the 10th anniversary of the Obama-Castro détente.