NASHVILLE – Tennessee business and community leaders assembled Monday to support a bipartisan public policy group in its effort to end the U.S. trade embargo with Cuba.
Engage Cuba held a round table discussion with the leaders and announced the formation of a 15-member Tennessee State Council, representing an array of sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, business and the arts.
Engage Cuba president James Williams said the group plans to form similar councils in Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana, Ohio and Texas, all of which he considers “natural markets to export to Cuba.”
“The idea of what we’re trying to do here is to show that this is a relative issue and not just for Washington, but for people all across the country,” Williams told The Associated Press before the meeting.
President Barack Obama has said his administration is considering a new set of regulations further loosening the embargo, which is imposed by U.S. law. Cuban officials told reporters last month they expected deals on regularly scheduled flights, anti-drug cooperation and environmental protection by around the end of the year.