Cubans hope relations with US change under Biden

A new administration is now in the White House and many entrepreneurs in Cuba are waiting to see if US President Joe Biden will ease or lift sanctions on the island.

Biden has yet to make an announcement on his Cuba policy, but many expect it to come very soon.

A few years ago, business was brisk at the "Clandestina" store that sells all kinds of vintage brands.

Idania del Río and her partner Leire Fernández, owners of the shop, remember the boom years in 2015 and 2016 towards the end of the Obama administration.

It was a time that gave Cubans a brief glimpse of what life could be like without US sanctions, first imposed more than half a century ago.

But after President Donald Trump imposed new restrictions on trade with the island, plus the effect of the coronavirus pandemic, the store has few customers now.

Experts believe the new restrictions have cost Cuba 5.5 billion dollars over the past year alone.

Like many Cubans, del Río - and her Spanish partner Leire Fernández - are crossing their fingers in the hope that Biden will follow up on his pledge to boost trade links.

During the Obama era, many Americans travelled to Cuba. Trade agreements were signed. Restrictions were relaxed, allowing privately-owned Cuban businesses to trade with US companies.

Reymel Delgado, who runs a video production company in Havana, remembers those days well.

As US sanctions began to ease, Delgardo began receiving calls from Hollywood to help produce Cuba-based movie sequences in blockbuster hits like Fast & Furious 8 and Transformers: The Last Knight.

It was the first time in 50 years that US movies of this magnitude were being filmed in Cuba with the help of privately-owned local companies.

Then came four years of renewed economic pressure from Washington under the Trump administration.

Now though, there's optimism that Biden will follow in Barack Obama's footsteps and work towards better relations.

There is no ambassador and consular services are at a minimum after Trump called most of the American diplomats home after accusing Cuba of being responsible for sonic attacks that affected their health, an issue that remains in mystery as there is so far no proof that the Cuban government was behind any such incident.

Carlos Alzugaray, a Cuban political analyst and former ambassador, stresses the importance of the diplomatic agenda on the island.

"(Biden) has to make a decision: to appoint an ambassador or not, to open it or not," he said, noting the difficulty for Cubans to process visas in the absence of an embassy.

"There is a pending agenda which is to sit down and talk with the Cuban government", said Alzugaray.