Callejón de Hamel (Hamel Alley) — a vibrant street in the Cayo Hueso neighborhood of Central Havana devoted to Afro-Cuban culture —is where Elier Lima first fell in love with dance. [...] This significant cultural space, which also features music, theater and art became the first stage Lima danced son, salsa and rumba before joining the Dance School of the National Theatre of Cuba and the National Folkloric Ensemble of Cuba.

The US must return to a policy that prioritises providing both moral and material support for Cuba’s dissidents and human rights activists. Funding for Cuba democracy programmes was redirected by the Obama administration to other activities on the island. [...] Human rights in Cuba must also be reprioritised at the United Nations, other international forums, and in US public diplomacy campaigns.

Assembled informally a few months ago by a handful of baseball-loving friends in Philadelphia's suburbs, predominantly Lower Merion, this self-funded team is set to embark on a goodwill sports trip to Cuba. [...] [T]hey want to be citizen-ambassadors at a time when President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to end the U.S.-Cuba rapprochement begun two years ago under President Obama, and the recent death of Fidel Castro has ratcheted up the political uncertainty in the island nation.

Negotiations need to be proactive, intensive and include concrete, partial and measureable propositions in two or three months maximum. “Large sets of measures” shouldn’t be negotiated because they will only further root the positions of both parties. Transparency is a necessary condition for drawing concrete agreements which are fulfilled with a public declaration made by both parties about what they agree on and what they are forced to do, and when.

Fidel Castro is now a relic of the past. Cuba’s communist government will mourn him, erect a statue in his honor and dedicate a plaza in his name for the contributions he made to the revolution. And we won’t be waiting until the Malecón dries — which is to say forever — to see how the outcome of the 2016 U.S. presidential election changes the course of U.S.-Cuban relations.

The Canadian PM said that good relations with the United States were compatible with Canada maintaining strong political and trade ties with Cuba. “Canada has always been a true and sincere friend of Cuba and we have never seen a contradiction between being great friends of Cuba and being good friends and partners with the United States,” he said.