The governments of the US and Cuba will maintain their dialogue for restoring diplomatic ties and ultimately normalising the relations between the two countries.

The statement was made following the first scheduled meeting on the issue in Cuba’s capital of Havana on January 21-22.

During the talks, the two sides sought the possibilities of cooperation in the fight against human trafficking, oil spill prevention, search and rescue operations in air accidents, environmental protection, Ebola prevention, and telecommunication.

Meeting the media after the talks, Roberta Jacobson, US Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, and Josefina Vidal, head of the Cuban Foreign Ministry’s North American affairs division confirmed that the two sides will use the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations to guide the process of renewing ties.

However, no date was set for the opening of the embassies in the two countries.

Jacobson hailed the talks as positive and productive, viewing the opening of embassies as part of the diplomatic relations restoring process.

Meanwhile, the normalisation of relations is a far more complicated and lengthy task due to the profound differences between the two countries, she added.

For her part, Vidal said the US’s lifting of its embargo against Cuba is vital to the normalisation of ties between the two countries.-VNA