Rice in Spain to build relations

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s one-day visit to Spain today is meant to smooth over a three-year downturn in relations between Washington and Madrid.

But both sides say they won’t shy away from sensitive issues, foremost among them Cuba.

Even before she landed, Ms Rice blasted a decision by her Spanish counterpart, Miguel Angel Moratinos, to snub Cuban dissidents on a recent visit to Havana, saying it was clear the United States and Spain do not “see eye-to-eye” on what to do about Fidel Castro’s regime.

“The Cubans deserve better and I think we will talk about that,” she said on Tuesday.

For its part, Spain has been downplaying Ms Rice’s visit, indicating Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero was far more focused on meetings this week and next with new French President Nicolas Sarkozy, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Japanese foreign minister.

His office said his face-to-face with Ms Rice would be brief, and characterised it as a “courtesy call”.

But the Spanish leader has also said he would be glad to discuss Cuba, and hoped his explanation could relieve US concerns.