Kerry and Rodriguez make 'progress' as US and Cuba prepare for historic reconciliation

As Presidents Obama and Castro arrived in Panama for the Summit of the Americas, reports said the US State Department had recommended removing Cuba from its list of nations said to sponsor terrorism.

The two countries’ foreign ministers have already been meeting.

US Secretary of State John Kerry “made progress“ in talks with Cuba’s foreign minister on Thursday night as the two countries seek to put behind decades of animosity and restore full diplomatic relations, the US government said.

“Secretary Kerry and Cuban Foreign Minister (Bruno) Rodriguez had a lengthy and very constructive discussion this evening. The two agreed they made progress and that we would continue to work to resolve outstanding issues,“ a senior State Department official said.

In Jamaica, earlier though, President Obama urged patience when it comes to US-Cuba relations.

“I never foresaw that immediately, overnight, everything would transform itself, that suddenly overnight Cuba became a partner diplomatic