Havana - The freighter Ana Cecilia, which sailed last Wednesday from Miami to Cuba with a cargo of goods considered humanitarian aid, docked Friday in the port of Havana to inaugurate a service of regular shipments without precedent in the last 50 years.
The ship's arrival in Havana Bay occurred at dawn Friday, one day behind schedule due to administrative problems with the documentation needed for docking at the Cuban capital.
The vessel, which on its first trip to Cuba carried only one container, entered the bay under Cuban and Bolivian flags, since it is registered in that landlocked South American country, a spokesman for the International Port Corporation, the company in charge of the shipping, told EFE.
The Ana Cecilia is planned to begin a regular transport service to Cuba with goods categorized as humanitarian aid, while this week's sailing constitutes the first direct maritime shipment between Miami and Havana in more than 50 years.
Leonardo Sanchez, spokesman for IPC, said by telephone Friday that the frequency of shipments will be based on the volume of requests for them that the company receives.
The IPC company has all the licenses required by the US government under the terms of Washington's 49-year-old economic embargo against the communist-ruled island.
This service is permitted to transport a wide range of items considered by the US as humanitarian aid including medicines, food, clothing, electric appliances, furniture, building materials, car parts and electric generators.
Most of the goods are sent by businesses and individuals from among Miami's large population of Cuban exiles.
Those to whom the goods are sent can pick them up at the port of Havana or have them delivered to a specific address by the Cubapack company.
The new service seems to be evidence of a certain relaxing of the long-standing tension between the US and Cuba, following the easing in recent years of some restrictions on sending
remittances and making trips to the island.
| Other Articles: |
 |
Business-friendly Gujarat appeals to US firms (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
Bengal minister in war of words with travel show organisers (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
DGCA reviews airlines' safety (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
HDFC Bank quarterly net profit rises 31 percent (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
TRAI's revised tariff analysis flawed: COAI (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
P. Balaji new Nokia India vice president, managing director (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
Infosys among top service providers in China (14th Jul, 2012) |
|
High aircraft parking charges at Mumbai flayed (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Marquinhos, Perea to join Changchun Yatai (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
PM sets up experts panel to review, rework GAAR (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Sensex closes in red, consumer durable, realty stocks down (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Tube Investments to acquire Shanthi Gears for Rs.292 crore (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
LIC Housing Finance QIP in 2-3 months (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
GST issue will be resolved soon: Chidambaram (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Sensex closes 22 points down (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
DoT to meet operators on spectrum reserve price (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Finnair adjudged best north European airline for third year (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
India's exports slump by 5.45 percent in June (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Advertisers could target online customers with personality scale (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
China's GDP growth slows to 7.6 percent in Q2 (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Travel management group Egencia adds seven new countries to Its global alliance (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
China's industrial output growth rises (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
US federal deficit narrows (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
China's growth at its three year low (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Hyundai to launch tablet production in Russia (13th Jul, 2012) |
|
Jobs |
Blog |
Yellow Pages |
Games |
Jokes |
Chat |
e-Cards |
Astrology |
Articles |
Recipes |
Send Gifts
Today : Friday - May 24, 2013, 04:10pm (GMT+5.5)
