WASHINGTON — Two days after reopening diplomatic relations with Cuba, President Barack Obama said Friday he doesn't expect the effort to bring overnight change on the island, a quick end to the U.S. economic embargo or the likelihood that he will soon visit the communist nation.
"This is still a regime that oppresses its people," Obama said at a year-end news conference two days after the historic announcement that he was moving to end the half century of Cold War acrimony with Havana. He said he hopes to visit Cuba at some point in his life but that he is not at the stage yet of going or hosting Cuban President Raul Castro in Washington.
Instead, Obama said the change in policy should give the U.S. a greater opportunity to have influence on Cuba and reflects his belief that 50 years of isolation haven't worked. He said the embargo should end but he didn't anticipate it soon.
"We will be in a position to respond to whatever action they take the same way we do with a whole range of countries around the world when they do things that we think are wrong," Obama said. "There may be carrots as well as sticks that we can then apply."
Obama said he saw the year as basically positive. In fact he declared 2014 "a breakthrough year for America," putting aside the fits and starts of the past 12 months to focus on achievements and the prospect of compromise with his political foes who are taking control of Congress.
"My presidency is entering the fourth quarter. Interesting stuff happens in the fourth quarter," Obama said before leaving on a two-week vacation to Hawaii.
He ticked off the year's improvements, citing lower unemployment and a rising number of Americans covered by health insurance and a historic diplomatic opening with Cuba. On climate change, the touted his own executive action and a Chinese agreement to combat global warming. He also noted that on Friday the Treasury Department announced it had sold the last investment related to the Wall Street and auto bailouts.
"Take any metric that you want, America's resurgence is real," Obama said.
On Cuba, Obama said longtime leader Fidel Castro's name came up only briefly in his phone call with Castro's brother and successor. Obama said he opened the call with about 15 minutes of an opening statement, then apologized for talking so long.
Obama said President Raul Castro responded, "You're still a young man and you still have a chance to break Fidel's record. He once spoke for seven hours straight."
Obama said the Cuban leader then delivered an opening statement at least twice as long as his. "I was able to say it runs in the family."