LANSING, Mich. — Cuba’s Ambassador to the United States since 2015, Jose Ramon Cabanas Rodriguez, visited Michigan last month to speak about improving trade between the two countries.

 

Cabanas spoke to the board of directors of the Michigan Farm Bureau (MFB) on March 20 and, a day later, the Detroit Economic Club. The visit to the MFB in Lansing was “a great event,” said Kevin Robson, an MFB spokesman and horticulture specialist for the farm group.

 

“He did a great job speaking about how Cuba spends $2 billion a year on agricultural commodities. They want the embargo to change, is the bottom line. The question was asked, ‘What can the Michigan Farm Bureau do to change things?’ His answer, to start, was get everybody in a room to discuss the embargo,” he explained.

 

That may or may not happen during the Trump administration, which has taken a harsher tone on Cuba after the Obama administration had softened the U.S. stance regarding the communist country and the 59-year trade embargo and ban on American tourists visiting Cuba.

 

In his presentation at MFB, Cabanas said a number of understandings had already been reached between the two countries, including the establishment of scheduled flights; direct transportation of mail between the countries; cooperation in agriculture and related fields; and cooperation on health care issues, immigration policy, law enforcement and passenger and trade security.

 

Cabanas said cooperation has also been secured on environmental protection and conservation of marine and terrestrial protected areas, as well as wildlife and protected national land.

 

“On biotechnology, I think we can do many things,” he told the MFB board of directors. “Right now, we don’t have trade today, but once we have it we need to learn a lot about your legal framework, and the same for you in our case.

 

“You can imagine we import $2 billion a year in ag commodities, but that’s only for our 11 million people population. But we’ll welcome this year roughly 4 million visitors, I mean tourists, from all over the world, including the United States – not as tourists, but as visitors, because under the current law you are not allowed to visit Cuba as a tourist. But the point is, it could be for people from all over the world, not just our local population,” Cabanas said.

 

According to him, a few American companies are now doing business in the Cuban market and he expects there will be more scientific and university exchanges between the two countries. He added that Cuba and the United States signed a phytosanitary and animal health agreement this January, to help pave the way for increased agricultural trade between the two.

 

According to a published report in The Detroit News on March 21, Cabanas addressed the Detroit Economic Club the following day. “I think, like Cuba, your main asset here is the people,” Cabanas said before the crowd of about 200 people. “We probably should think about how we can complement each other. No doubt agriculture is one field, but there are many others.

 

“I invite all of you to come to Cuba and see what we have done over the last few years.”