Cuba, EU to resume negotiations to normalize ties

Cuba and the European Union (EU) are expected to resume talks on normalizing bilateral relations next week, according to the EU office in Havana Wednesday.

Negotiators from the two sides will meet in Havana on March 3-4 for the seventh round of talks, said a statement released by the EU representative in Cuba.

The meeting "will address pending issues...on political dialogue and cooperation as well as the institutional provisions and general provisions of the agreement," the statement said.

The talks will be chaired by Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Abelardo Moreno and Christian Leffler, Secretary-General for Economic and Global Affairs of the European External Action Service.

Cuba is the only Latin American country without a bilateral treaty with the EU.

Negotiations between the two sides started in April 2014 at the request of the EU, which moved to accelerate the normalizing of relations after Havana and Washington announced a historic detente in July 2015.

The two sides have concluded negotiations related to trade cooperation, and Leffler said that common ground has been found in almost all areas.

The remaining chapter is human rights and is considered the most difficult, but the Cuban delegation has said it would hold a "deep exchange to bring the positions of the two sides closer together."

Since the negotiations began in 2014, the EU has allocated 110 million U.S. dollars to help Cuba develop sustainable agriculture and food, among other economic objectives. Endi