Cuba

Foreign ministers of the European Union have urged the bloc’s foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton to start efforts to thaw bilateral relations between the EU and Cuba. Spain is leading a call to soften the EU’s policy to make conditional contacts with the Caribbean country based on its progress on upholding human rights, Deutsche Presse-Agentur says. France and Italy also supported the call, prompting EU foreign ministers who were meeting in Luxembourg to encourage Ashton to explore the possibilities of resuming political contacts between the EU and Cuba, the news agency explains.