U.S. rules out quick Cuba policy change

Obama, who is waging a hard-fought campaign with Clinton for the Democratic nomination, said the U.S. must be prepared to take steps to normalize relations with Cuba and to ease the embargo if Cuba's new leaders "begins opening Cuba to meaningful democratic change."

Castro's resignation "should mark the end of a dark era in Cuba's history. ... Fidel Castro's stepping down is an essential first step, but it is sadly insufficient in bringing freedom to Cuba," he said.

McCain underscored that "freedom for the Cuban people is not yet at hand." "We must press the Cuban regime to release all political prisoners unconditionally, to legalize all political parties, labor unions and free media, and to schedule internationally monitored elections," he said in a statement.

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Miami-area Republican who was born in Havana, said Castro's resignation was irrelevant because his regime had already "done great harm to the suffering Cuban people."

Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., who is of Cuban descent, said Castro's resignation "is not the cause for celebration that some would believe. This does not represent the replacement of totalitarianism with democracy. Instead, it is the replacement of one dictator with another."

Cuban leaders have often expressed willingness to deal with the United States — but only on Cuban terms — conditions that look nothing like the U.S. demands laid down to lift the embargo in the Helms-Burton Act of 1996.

The law grants U.S. presidents broad leeway over how to enforce the embargo, the embargo rules themselves stand as long as either Raul or Fidel is in power, according to Helms-Burton.

Still, Raul Castro has repeatedly offered to improve relations with Washington, even if the Bush administration shows no sign of taking him up on it. He has hinted he favors greater, if still limited economic freedom. And he's already allowed more, if limited public criticism of the government.

Since taking the provisional presidency, he has extradited three U.S. fugitives, reduced the number of Cuban political prisoners by more than 20 percent and refrained from imposing the death penalty in two military mutinies where firing squads seemed likely. He also said Cuban forces would recapture any terror suspects who escape from the Guantanamo prison.

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