Following the earlier announcement by the White House that a State Visit to Cuba would he held on 21 and 22 March, the government in Cuba announced it would ease restrictions of 7 dissidents in Cuba, making it possible for them to travel to the US. The dissidents were arrested during an event called the ''Cuban Black Spring'' in 2003, a crackdown by the government at the time. Already last year 53 so called political prisons were released from jail in Cuba. While the move is considered as a symbolic gesture to the US, it is criticised as being arbitrary as well since on a regular basis people are still being detained in Cuba for political reasons.

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For more on the Cuban Black Spring read here.

Historical timelines of US-Cuba relations can be found here and here. Possible reasons for the relaxations are explained here.