The US has reopened its embassy in
Cuba more than 54 years after it was closed, in a symbolic step
signalling the warming of ties between both countries.
John Kerry, the first US Secretary of State to visit Cuba in 70 years, presided over the ceremony in Havana.
The US flag was presented by the same US marines who brought it down in 1961.
Cuba
reopened its embassy in Washington last month but the former Cuban
leader Fidel Castro has blasted the US for not lifting its trade
embargo.
In an open letter on Thursday, Mr Castro said the US owed
Cuba millions of dollars because of its 53-year-long embargo. The
letter makes no mention of the reopening of the US embassy.
Mr Kerry described the hoisting of the flag as a "historic moment" speaking during the ceremony on Friday.
But he also warned that the US would not stop pressing for political change in Cuba.
"The
people of Cuba would be best served by a genuine democracy, where
people are free to choose their leaders," he told a crowd of hundreds
gathered outside the embassy building.
At the scene - Jon Sopel, BBC North America editor
Diplomacy
is the cold and rational pursuit of national interest. But twice I saw
John Kerry wipe his eye at the end of his speech at the American
embassy.
The handing over of the flag by three old men who 54
years ago as young marines took it down; the US army band striking up
the national anthem; the Stars and Stripes hoisted once more - this
could never be seen as just cold diplomacy at work. There was emotion.
On
both sides. US Cuban relations are entering a new era, and though there
will be difficulties ahead and fresh misunderstandings, for those who
had brought this restoration of diplomatic relations about, today was
one to savour in the Caribbean heat. In the past, he conceded, US policies have not led to democracy. "Cuba's future is for Cubans to shape," he added.
Three
retired marines who lowered the American flag for the last time on 4
January 1961 handed it over to marines to raise it once again in Havana
as the American national anthem played.
"I'm gonna love seeing
that flag go back up," said former marine Jim Tracy, 78, in a US State
Department video released ahead of the ceremony.
Hundreds of Cubans turned out for the flag-raising ceremony
Three veteran marines who lowered the US flag in 1961 returned to watch it hoisted in Cuba once again
Secretary of State John Kerry is the highest level US official to visit Cuba in more than 70 years
Cuban leader Raul Castro and US President Barack Obama agreed to restore ties in December last year.
While
trade and travel restrictions have been relaxed, the Republican-led US
Congress has not lifted the trade embargo the US imposed on the
communist-run island in 1960.
Mr Kerry's visit to Cuba drew criticism from several leading Republicans, including presidential candidate Jeb Bush who said it was "a birthday present for Fidel Castro - a symbol of the Obama administration's acquiescence to his ruthless legacy".
He
and Marco Rubio, another presidential contender and Cuban-American
senator in Florida, also criticised the US secretary of state for not
inviting Cuban dissidents to the ceremony. Mr Kerry said he was due to
meet dissidents at a private event later on Friday.
Cuba says the embargo - which it calls a blockade - is hugely damaging to its economy.
It says relations will be fully restored only once it is lifted.
Fidel Castro's letter was published in state newspaper Granma to mark his 89th birthday. Fidel Castro: Cuba's revolutionary leader
Castro survived over 600 assassination attempts to become the longest serving non-royal leader of the 20th Century
In 1959 he took power in the Cuban Revolution after several years of guerrilla warfare in the mountains
The CIA sponsored an unsuccessful
invasion by 1,500 Cuban exiles at the Bay of Pigs in 1961. Castro took
personal charge of the defensive operation
In 1962 the Cuban Missile Crisis brought the world to the brink of nuclear war
125,000 Cubans emigrated to the US in the Mariel Boatlift in 1980
In 2008 Castro stepped down from power and handed over the reins to his younger brother Raul.
Venezuelan and Bolivian Presidents Nicolas
Maduro (left) and Evo Morales (centre) visited Fidel Castro in Cuba on
his birthday
In it, Mr Castro said Cuba was
committed to "good will and peace in our hemisphere" but added: "We will
never stop fighting for the peace and welfare of all human beings,
regardless of the colour of their skin and which country they come
from."
Fidel Castro led his country from the Cuban Revolution, in
1959, until 2006, when he stood down because of undisclosed health
problems.
He passed on power to his younger brother, Raul, who embarked on a number of economic reforms.
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