The two Heads of State had talks over the weekend in Panama.

Presidents Barack Obama of the United States of America (USA) and Raul Castro of Cuba  have set the pace for future cooperation between their two countries  thereby turning  the page of more than 50 years of hostility.  Obama and Raul Castro for the first time had talks in Panama on April 11, 2015 on the fringes of the Summit of the Americas. The Summit brings together the leaders of North, Central and South America.

Describing their meeting as “candid and fruitful”, US President Obama declared, "What we have both concluded is that we can disagree with a spirit of respect and civility.  Over time, it is possible for us to turn the page and develop a new relationship between our two countries,” BBC quoted the US President as saying. Mr Obama said the meeting would help the United States of America and Cuba to turn the page of decades of hostility.

The Cuban President Raul Castro said the two countries had “agreed to disagree” when necessary, BBC reported. "We are disposed to talk about everything, with patience," he was quoted as saying and further stated that, "Some things we will agree with, and others we won't." Raul Castro equally stated that, "When I talk about the revolution, the passion oozes out of me.  I have to ask President Obama for forgiveness. He is not responsible for the things which happened before his time." After Mr Obama’s speech on the history of the relationship between the US and Cuba, Raul Castro referred to him as an honest man.

The US broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1959 after Fidel Castro and his brother Raul led a revolution toppling US-backed President Fulgencio Batista. The Castros established a revolutionary socialist State with close ties to the Soviet Union.  Attempts to improve relations between the US and Cuba began in December  2014 when President  Obama declared Washington's approach "outdated" and opened up possibilities of normalising relations.

As the normalization talks progress, President Raul Castro has been pressing for the lifting of the US economic blockade on Cuba and the country's removal from Washington's list of state sponsors of terrorism. The US on its part has been hammering on key issues such as political reform and human rights in Cuba. President Obama is expected to remove Cuba from the terrorism list in the coming days, BBC said.