2nd LD: U.S., Cuban presidents shake hands at historic American Summit

U.S. President Barack Obama and Cuban leader Raul Castro shook hands here Friday in a highly symbolic exchange of greetings at a historic Summit of the Americas.

The face-to-face interaction came after the two countries began their rapprochement in December.

This is the first time that a Cuban leader has been invited to attend the regional gathering since the first summit in 1994, as the Caribbean island country was shut out of the past summits due to U.S. opposition.

Cuba's participation in the meeting has offered opportunity for the encounter of Obama and Castro.

The two spoke by phone Wednesday before Obama left Washington, Jorge Leganoa, deputy director of Cuba's state-run National Information Agency, said on Facebook.

The United States and Cuba held three rounds of talks on the process of restoring diplomatic relations during the past three months.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez held a closed-meeting Thursday night in Panama City, the highest-level meeting since 1961, in a run-up to the encounter of the two heads of state at the summit.

The U.S. State Department has completed the review of Cuba's status and recommended the White House remove Cuba from the State Sponsors of Terrorism List.

Obama vowed to act quickly once he receives the department's recommendation, which has been handed to the White House.

Cuba was added to the blacklist in 1982 and its presence has been a major sticking point to the restoration of full diplomatic relations between two countries.

U.S. half-a-century economic and trade embargo against the Caribbean island country is another stumbling block in the process of detente. Endi