President of U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Cuba

The President of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Thomas Donohue is paying a visit to Cuba, which included talks with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez and with Foreign Trade and Investment Minister Rodrigo Malmierca.

Donohue is accompanied by entrepreneurs and executives, including the president of the Chamber’s Board of Directors, Steve Van Andel. The visitors are scheduled to tour places related with the ongoing update of Cuban economy.

Donohue paid a previous visit to Cuba in 1999 representing the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which groups over 300 thousand direct members and three million companies affiliated to state and local chambers.

In a press release last week in Washington, he said the trip would give him a “first-hand idea” about the changes in the island’s economic policies and the possibility of doing business with Cuba.

Last week, 40 U.S. personalities asked U.S President Barack Obama to ease the economic and trade blockade Washington has imposed on Cuba since 1961, the same year both countries broke off diplomatic relations.