U.S.-Cuban Relations in a New Century

Jorge I. Domínguez, Antonio Madero Professor of Government, Department of Government, and Rafael M. Hernández, editor of Temas and Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professor Fall 2006, are collaborating on the organization of a meeting and preparation of a book on U.S.-Cuba relations in a New Century with support from the Christopher Reynolds Foundation. The project seeks to sketch where and why the United States and Cuba differ; to identify the issues where differences are likely to endure; and to point to other issues where skillful diplomacy might find joint interests in order to settle disputes in accord with respective national goals. The chapters examine multiple facets of U.S.-Cuban relations including the international, regional, bilateral and domestic factors that have enhanced and deterred cooperation, the role of the European Union in bilateral relations, as well as security, economic, cultural and diaspora issue. Seeking to emphasize the importance of understanding the “lenses” through which individuals make sense of events, the book will contain two full chapters on each topic, one by a scholar from Cuba and another by a scholar from outside Cuba who is knowledgeable about the U.S. position on the topic and U.S.-Cuban relations.

Participating Harvard faculty: Jorge I. Domínguez, Antonio Madero Professor of Mexican and Latin American Politics and Economics, Department of Government

Collaborating Institutions: Centro de Estudios de Información de la Defensa

U.S. - Cuba Policy

The David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies (DRCLAS) at Harvard University has sponsored a series of events aimed at examining existing U.S.-Cuba relations. The purpose of these events is to advance policy debates on bilateral relations and, if possible, highlight areas where policy consensus exists on how relations between the United States and Cuba can be improved.

In the 2001-2 academic year, DRCLAS convened U.S.-Cuba specialists in three separate panels aimed at examining U.S. policy towards Cuba , with particular interest in encouraging discussion in the policy arena. To read the Center's proceedings report on these activities, please see the working papers section of the website.

DRCLAS has also sponsored events aimed at examining U.S.-Cuba Relations in historical context. On March 22-24, 2001, Professor Jorge I. Domínguez participated at a conference on the Bay of Pigs invasion (April 17-19, 1961), organized by the U.S. National Security Archives and the Government of Cuba. Dr. Peter Kornbluh was the lead organizer from the United States ; Vice President José Ramon Fernández was the lead organizer from Cuba . The conference was held at the Palacio de las Convenciones in Havana.

Jorge I. Domínguez, Antonio Madero Professor of Mexican and Latin American Economics and Politics, spoke informally about this conference at Harvard University's David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies on 24 April 2001. Please read Jorge I. Domínguez's commentary: "Reflections on the March 2001 Bay of Pigs Conference"

Visiting Scholars from Cuba & Topics Studied:

Jorge Mario Sánchez: U.S.-Cuba Commercial Relations: Effects over the Exchange Rate

Luis René Fernández Tabio: The Miami Enclave and a Potential Economic Relation with Cuba

Soraya Castro Marino: The U.S. Policy-Making Process Towards Cuba After the Cold War

Luis René Fernández Tabio: The Impact of Cuban Business Networks in Miami and San Juan on Bilateral Trade