America's Presidential Elections Spells Trouble for U.S.-Cuba Relations?

Cuban Foreign Ministry Director for North America, Josefina Vidal, fears that the upcoming US Presidential elections may spell trouble for U.S.-Cuban relations. She urged President Barack Obama to dismantle existing US laws on the Cuban nation while he is still in power in order to makes the ties between the two nations less vulnerable.

In a report with The Guardian, Vidal said that she is concerned that the upcoming presidential elections has added some uncertainty to how she views Cuba's future relations with the United States. She added that while she continues about her work with a "certain amount of optimism and momentum," she could not help but feel a certain bit of realism as the presidential elections draws ever closer. Vidal added that she has no idea on how things will pan out in the future.

There are "variables outside of our control" in the presidential elections, Vidal added.

Those who support the rapprochement, fear that a new president could hinder advances made in the US-Cuba relationship under the Obama administration. However, the crowded field of Republican presidential candidates have been hostile towards the president's decision to restore ties with Cuba after what has been more than five decades. Democratic candidates, on the other hand, back the move. 

Obama and Cuban president, Raúl Castro, announced on December 2014 that they would reestablish diplomatic ties between their two nations. They agreed to work toward normalization, which led to the reopening of embassies in each of the nation's capitals last year.

Vidal said that President Obama could do much more to ensure that relations between the two countries are less vulnerable before he goes out of office.

In a report with Yahoo, Vidal said that the rapprochement was not yet "irreversible." She warned that the next US president might revoke some of Obama's executive orders to ease restrictions on Cuba. She added that the next US president might "devoid them of meaning via inaction."

"I can't imagine a new president, whoever it is, deciding to break off relations with Cuba and close the (US) embassy," said Vidal. 

Vidal also appealed to Washington to move faster on lowering economic and trade barriers in Cuba, which has been in place in 1962. 

As Obama nears the end of his term, he said that he intends to visit Cuba, however, the president insists that such a visit would hinge on the communist regime that would stave crack-downs on political dissent.