Editors Note: The interview took place before the administration of President George W. Bush took measures in early May to restrict remittances sent to Cuba by relatives in the United States. Cuba responded by suspending the sale of all but food, personal hygiene and cleaning products in Cuban stores that accept only dollars.

How do you see the current state of US-Cuban relations?

There are two important things to be stressed, which are contradictory. Nobody can ignore the fact that a new trend in American society favors changing 45 years of US policy. For the first time, you have U.S. agribusiness interests selling to Cuba. And on more than one occasion, Congress has clearly indicated a desire to at least end the travel ban. Others want more radical changes, like ending the embargo, but at least you can safely talk about a growing consensus in the United States [towards changing US policy]. The Bush administration is clearly committed to the opposite: to reinforce the travel ban and oppose any intent even to modify the embargo.

I am concerned over the increasingly belligerent talk of regime change coming from Washington — particularly from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell. I have to take seriously what they have said on many occasions. When they’ve been asked [about a possible invasion of Cuba], the answer was always that they didn’t plan one now, which is not very reassuring. They have more than once referred to a so-called new war, and lessons to be drawn from the war in Iraq, which is that the US can go to war at any time of its choosing, without international backing.

Clearly, you have people committed to such interests in Florida, and a number of representatives from those Florida groups that are part of this administration, extremely ideologically motivated people who really believe in imperialism. In the meantime, the embargo continues to be enforced, and we continue to suffer the consequences.

Are things getting worse under the 40-year-old US trade embargo?

Cuba can live with the embargo. It’s just that its consequences are reflected in everything Cuba does — in the prices we pay and our terms of trade with other countries. We are the only country under a US embargo. That is part and parcel of our economic life. Every contract we sign has a Cuban risk clause. Imagine a freighter that brings products from Europe to Cuba. The captain and the owner of that boat know that once they call on Havana, they cannot enter a U.S. port for six months.

What would happen if Sen. John Kerry wins the election in November?

At this moment, I wouldn’t like to say anything, but [some people think that] with Kerry or Bush in the White House, it would be the same. The only difference with Kerry that I can imagine is that you won’t have Otto Reich as a special advisor or [United Nations Ambassador Roger] Noriega. There would be different people, but they’d have to face the same reality: the trend in favor of normalization.

What is Cuba’s response to the five Cubans jailed for alleged spying in the US? What do you say to the suggestion that Washington send the men back to Cuba on the condition that Cuba free the 75 independent politicians, bookstore owners and journalists who were jailed last year in the dissident crackdown?

The five should not be in prison, and they should never have been arrested. The 75 (dissidents) are in jail here not because they spoke out against the system, but because they accepted money from a foreign government, in this case the United States. US policy is to create independent organizations in other countries, but that’s the best way to kill the very idea of having something independent. You need a lot of ignorance not to see that.

What is going on with the European Community and its policy towards Cuba?

As a matter of fact, the EU’s anti-Cuban position was not the result of what we had to do a year ago [jail the dissidents]. The EU was conforming to the US position even before the arrests. It has a lot to do with the role of [former Spanish Prime Minister] José Aznar. It was a consequence of the efforts of his government and him personally. For many Europeans, relations with Latin America are conditioned by Spain. Not having him in Madrid any longer is a very good signal for all of Latin America.

What will happen to Cuba after the death of Castro, who turns 78 in August?

Nobody can substitute for anybody else. We’ll never have another person with the capacity to speak for seven hours. Because of the focus on Fidel, some people identify a whole historical process with one person. But the fact is that the generation which took power 45 years ago is retiring and dying off. People like Fidel, Raúl (Castro) and myself are getting older every year. Unfortunately, I haven’t found a way out of that yet.