Obama to talk Cuba during Jamaica trip

President Obama made a surprise visit to the Bob Marley Museum Photo courtesy Jamaica Observer)

(CNS): The US President Barack Obama arrived in Jamaica at 7:31 Wednesday evening for a three-and-a-half-day trip to Jamaica and Panama for a series of meetings at which the US relationship with Cuba is expected to take center stage. However, shortly after landing Obama deviated from his official itinerary by making a surprise visit to the Bob Marley Museum in St Andrew, the Jamaican media reports.

On Thursday Obama will meet with CARICOM leaders in Kingston to discuss a range of issues, from security in the region to energy. The highly anticipated Summit co-chaired by Chairman of CARICOM Perry Christie, the prime minister of the Bahamas, comes in the wake of a high level engagement between Caribbean leaders and US Vice President Joe Biden late January in Washington DC.

The meeting is expected to reflect the major concerns of CARICOM, as many of the member states seek to emerge from the lingering effects of the global economic and financial crisis, officials from the regional community said in a release. “With economic growth as a main goal of CARICOM discussions related to competitiveness with the region’s main trading partner is a significant element of the meeting,” they added.

The second leg of the presidential regional trip will be to Panama City for meetings with CEOs, Central American leaders and others before attending the Seventh Summit of the Americas, which, for the first time, will be attended by all 35 countries in the Western Hemisphere — including Cuba.

See more photos of President Obama’s visit on the Jamaica Observer website