Castro meets US lawmakers in Cuba

CUBA: President Raul Castro on Tuesday welcomed a delegation of US lawmakers, the first to come to Cuba since US President Barack Obama's re-election, the media reported. "Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla took part in the meeting, and issues of interest to both countries were addressed," a statement read out on the government news broadcast said.

The US legislators were in Havana to meet with Cuban officials and hope to visit an American contractor jailed for distributing laptops and satellite phones, diplomatic sources said earlier. The US lawmakers also met with Rodriguez Parrilla and Ricardo Alarcon, a former Cuban Ambassador to the United Nations and Assembly Speaker, the Cuban report said.

Sources at the US Interests Section said the delegation arrived Monday and is led by Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont.

AFP