Governor Cuomo and Raúl Castro of Cuba Meet

Governor Cuomo and Raúl Castro of Cuba Meet
By SUSANNE CRAIGSEPT. 25, 2015

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York, seeking to expand the state's
relationship with Cuba, met on Friday with its president, Raúl Castro,
for the first time, the governor's office said.

Mr. Cuomo, along with Howard Zemsky, one of his top economic advisers,
met with President Castro and some of his advisers at Cuba's mission to
the United Nations, said Dani Lever, a Cuomo spokeswoman.

The governor traveled to Havana in April for a brief trade mission, an
effort he hoped would pave the way for New York companies to expand into
Cuba. He traveled with political leaders and business executives from
the state. JetBlue, Chobani Yogurt and Cayuga Milk Ingredients were
among the companies on the trip.

United States companies face many challenges in doing business in Cuba,
but Mr. Cuomo seemed undeterred during his trip to the island.

"Change is unsettling, and there are a lot of strong feelings," Mr.
Cuomo told reporters in April. But he said that change was coming to
Cuba, and that New York would be there to capitalize on it. "I think it
is inevitable," he said. "I think it is happening."

Mr. Cuomo was the first United States governor to visit Cuba since
President Obama late last year announced plans to ease diplomatic
relations with the island nation.

During the meeting on Friday, Ms. Lever said, the delegations discussed
economic development and had follow-up discussion about Mr. Cuomo's trip
to Havana. The meeting, which was not on his public schedule, lasted
about an hour, she said.

The two leaders did not cross paths on the governor's stay in Cuba,
which lasted 26 hours.

Pope Francis was in Cuba earlier this week, where he met Mr. Castro. The
Cuban president was in New York on Friday to participate in the United
Nations General Assembly, his first trip here in decades.

Source: Governor Cuomo and Raúl Castro of Cuba Meet - The New York Times
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http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/26/nyregion/governor-cuomo-and-raul-castro-of-cuba-meet.html?_r=0