Historic handshake between US President and Cuban President

This historic handshake is expected to thaw the relationship between the two countries that has existed for more than half a century.

US President Barack Obama on December 10 shook hands with Cuban President Raul Castro at the memorial service for the late President Nelson Mandela in South Africa. This was a rare gesture between the leaders of two countries that have had a poor relationship due to the US embargo on Cuba for more than half a century.

With the late President Mandela's message of reconciliation, the Cuban leader smiled as President Obama stopped to shake his hand, as Obama took to the podium to praise the work and legacy left by the late President Mandela.

US President and Cuban President talk intimately (Photo: Reuters)

In the Cuban capital of Havana, the friendly gesture raised hopes of a thaw and closer relations between Cuba and the United States. Cubans immediately expressed their joy at this symbolic gesture.

“Peace still exists, dialogue still exists, everything still exists. I think it is the best thing for both countries, not just Cuba,” said one Cuban.

This is the second historic handshake between the leaders of the two countries since the Cuban Revolution broke out in 1960. The first historic handshake between leader Fidel Castro and former US President Bill Clinton took place at the United Nations Millennium Summit in September 2000. However, this handshake was not captured in pictures.

The US has maintained its embargo on Cuba for more than 50 years. The Cuban government asserts that the US's unreasonable embargo has caused losses of more than 1,100 billion USD to the Cuban economy./.

According to VOV