Smokey Robinson adds star power to better US-Cuba ties
"King of Motown" Smokey Robinson added star power to the US drive to normalize relations with old Cold War enemy Cuba, joining Usher in an official delegation on a five-day visit to Havana.
Hip-hop star Usher made a surprise appearance on stage Tuesday at a concert by the reggaeton group Los 4, and soul great Robinson teamed up with Cuban salsa band Chapotin on Wednesday, in impromptu concerts. Singer-songwriter Dave Matthews was also part of the star-studded group.
The delegation, organized by the White House, has been touring the communist island's capital to foster closer cultural ties with Cuba, a month after President Barack Obama made history by becoming the first US leader to visit in nearly 90 years.
The group was led by the chairwoman of the US National Endowment for the Arts, Jane Chu, who said the NEA wanted to expand the long-estranged neighbors' budding rapprochement to the stage.
As part of that, the United States will soon begin funding exchange programs for American and Cuban actors, she said Thursday.
"This is the first time the US government will provide financial support for this exchange," Chu told a press conference.
Cuban writer Miguel Barnet, head of the Cuban Writers' and Artists' Union, backed the initiative, saying: "No government can prohibit (these artistic exchanges), on either side."
Obama and Cuban counterpart Raul Castro announced the two countries' landmark rapprochement in December 2014, leading to the restoration of diplomatic relations in July.
But despite steady progress on mending ties, the United States and Cuba remain deeply divided over a number of issues, including the ongoing US embargo, the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay and the Castro regime's crackdowns on political dissidents.
