The United States warned the European Union against lifting sanctions on Cuba, saying the move would sent the wrong signal to the "dictatorial regime." ( dpa )
"Certainly we would not be supportive of the EU or anyone else easing those restrictions at this time," US State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey said Thursday.
Reforms recently introduced under new Cuban President Raul Castro are "some very minor cosmetic changes" that fall well short of ending decades of repressive policies under Fidel Castro.
The European Union postponed any announcement during a meeting Monday in Luxembourg but could soon revisit the measure. The European Union imposed sanctions in 2003 after the communist regime arrested dozens of political dissidents, several of whom were sentenced to long prison terms.
The EU sanctions were suspended in 2005 but formally remain in place. US President George W Bush has refused to end the US embargo, in place since the 1960s, until Cuba takes concrete steps to end repression and establish democratic rule.
The end of EU sanctions would give legitimacy to what remains a dictatorial regime, Casey said, and countries should not signal that the "continued oppression of the Cuban people is any more acceptable now than in the past."