• Submitted by: manso
• Politics and Government
• 09 / 23 / 2011

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By Richard Danielson, Times Staff Writer. Sep 22, 2011. By Richard Danielson, Times Staff Writer. TAMPA — On its third try, the City Council Thursday voted to send a letter of greetings to the government of Cuba marking the "historic" resumption of direct commercial flights between Tampa and Havana.

The vote came at the request of Council Vice Chairwoman Mary Mulhern, who this month traveled to Havana after the flights began again for the first time since 1962.

"You do business with the people you know and trust," she said, adding that's why she's working to improve relationships between Havana and Tampa, its airport, port and agricultural community.

"If Tampa doesn't work diligently to expand our dialogue with Cuba, we are going to be left out in the cold when the cold war ends," she said.

But Council member Mike Suarez, who cast the lone dissenting vote, said it was inappropriate for the council to send a letter to a foreign national government, especially one with which the U.S. does not have normal diplomatic relations.

"My point is only about government-to-government communication," said Suarez, who said he applauds those who want to open trade and communication with Cuba. "I don't believe we should make government-to-government communications from this council to governments that don't have normalized relations" with the United States.

But at least a half-dozen speakers supported such gestures, and more.

"That's history," said Al Arteaga, 93, who went on the first flight and praised their ability to help people who live in Tampa to connect with relatives in Cuba. "I was very happy and I was hoping this would continue. Cuba needs it and we also need it. ... I think we should start talking."

Thursday's discussion followed two others on Sept. 8 and 15. At the first, Mulhern asked colleagues to join her in a letter greeting "the Cuban government and acknowledging and celebrating our opening up at least of commercial flights to Cuba."

But Suarez said the letter would make it appear that the council is talking "government to government to (Cuban National Assembly President) Ricardo Alarcon." It's not the business of the City Council "to make international policy," he said.

Mulhern and other council members said the issue is not about international diplomacy, but Tampa's need to position itself to trade with Cuba when the embargo ends, so that the city does not fall behind other cities when trade with Havana opens up.

2011 St. Petersburg Times

Source: www.tampabay.com/news/localgovernment/1192962