Josefina Vidal of Cuba spoke after a second round of diplomatic talks Friday.
WASHINGTON — The United States and Cuba claimed progress Friday toward ending a half-century diplomatic freeze, suggesting they could clear some of the biggest obstacles to their new relationship within weeks.
After talks Friday in Washington, the second round of discussions in the last month, diplomats of both countries spoke positively about fulfilling the promise made by Presidents Obama and Raul Castro in December to restore embassies in each other’s capitals.
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The United States even held out hope of clinching a deal in time for a summit in April of North and South American leaders, which Obama and Castro are expected to attend, however unlikely that appeared.
‘‘We made meaningful progress,’’ Roberta Jacobson, the State Department’s senior envoy to Latin America, told reporters, calling the negotiations ‘‘open, honest, and sometimes challenging, but always respectful.’’
Her Cuban counterpart, Josefina Vidal, indicated she received assurances that the United States would move on two of the biggest hurdles remaining: Cuba’s inclusion on the US state sponsor of terrorism blacklist and its inability to conduct normal banking operations in the United States. She expressed confidence of progress on both priorities ‘‘within the following weeks.’’
Cuba’s 33-year status on the terrorism list appeared the biggest hurdle, with Vidal saying the issue needed to be resolved if the Cold War foes were to improve ties. Washington is reviewing the designation, which stems from Havana’s support decades ago for the Basque separatist group ETA and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia, Latin America’s oldest and strongest rebel group.
The United States has yet to make a decision, but all signs point toward Cuba being taken off the list. US officials say they should make their recommendation ahead of the six-month schedule set out by Obama in December. And the administration has supported Cuba’s hosting of peace efforts between the FARC and Colombia’s government.
At a news conference earlier Friday with President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, Secretary of State John Kerry emphasized the US stance that the talks on reestablishing embassies were technical and distinct from the US legal examination of Cuba’s record on terrorism.
‘‘That’s one set of fairly normal negotiations with respect to movement of diplomats, access, travel, different things,’’ Kerry said. ‘‘The state sponsorship of terrorism designation is a separate process. It is not a negotiation. It is an evaluation that is made under a very strict set of requirements.’’
If the State Department recommends removal and Obama sends such a decision to Congress, Cuba would only come off after a 45-day waiting period. That makes it practically impossible for the embassies to be reconstituted in time for the Summit of the Americas in Panama, if Cuba sticks to its position.