CNN. July 3, 2000. Web posted at: 3:45 a.m. EDT (0745 GMT)
HAVANA (CNN) -- Despite recent anti-American rallies, the president of the Cuban General Assembly said Sunday that his country looks forward to a new, improved relationship with the United States.
"We are prepared to forget the past, to look towards the future and to accommodate ourselves with a new relationship with America," said Ricardo Alarcon, the assembly president and a confidante of Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
Speaking on ABC's This Week, Alarcon disputed suggestions that rallies protesting U.S. trade and immigration policies with Cuba undermine that goal.
Cuban officials said the embargoes on Cuba have hurt its people, and they have a right to protest. "It's a way to express your feelings," Alarcon said.
Elian case 'may help' relations
Thousands of Cubans rallied in Manzanillo on Saturday, denouncing U.S. policies, four days after Elian Gonzalez returned to Cuba with his father and family. The 6-year-old boy had been the focus of an international custody battle since he was rescued in November off the coast of Florida. His
mother and 10 other people died in their flight from Cuba.
"Our view is that the Elian Gonzalez event may help us precisely to improve relations," Alarcon said.
Alarcon's comments came one day after Castro released a letter defiantly challenging the next U.S. president to respect the communist nation's ideals.
Alarcon said the United States would have to take concrete steps to thaw relations between the two countries. He cited the economic embargo and travel restrictions to Cuba as two impediments.
Elian playing with friends away from cameras
"The fact is that the Cold War between the U.S. and Cuba has not been interrupted," he said.
Last week, the House approved the bill that would open the door to selling food and medicine to Cuba, but the measure has many restrictions.
Alarcon said the measure, if signed into law, would be a "serious setback."
As for Elian, who has remained out of public sight since his high-profile return, Alarcon said the boy was playing with friends and is fine.
"He's doing what a 6-year-old boy is supposed to do, away from the cameras, away from politics, back being a child," Alarcon said.
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