Havana - Cuba's removal from a U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism will be key to restoring formal diplomatic relations between the two nations, the lead Cuban negotiator said in remarks published Saturday.

Havana - Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan arrived in Cuba on Thursday to prod negotiators from the Colombian government and leftist FARC guerrillas to clinch a dragging peace agreement.

Havana - Colombia's government and leftist rebels launched a new round of peace talks Wednesday, one day ahead of the arrival of former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to help facilitate negotiations.

Havana - Communist Cuba's revolution has held sway for so long -- 56 years -- that those who remember no other system are nearing retirement age with a mixture of fond memories, and just a few regrets.

The first "Super" moon of 2015 will rise on Feb. 18th. As the moon rises it will be a rare "Super New Moon" which means the moon will not be visible.

A very agressive form of the HIV virus has been identified in Cuba, capable of turning into full-blown AIDS in less than three years. Doctors fear the disease can progress so quickly that treatment with drugs will be ineffective.

Havana - Colombia's FARC guerrillas pledged not to recruit fighters aged under 17, but the country's President Juan Manuel Santos said the move did not go far enough.

Havana - Colombia's FARC guerrillas pledged Thursday to stop recruiting child soldiers, as the leftist rebels and government attempt to thrash out a peace deal to end five decades of conflict.

Havana - Leftist FARC guerrillas on Saturday vowed to lay down their weapons and reinvent themselves as a political party, if the Colombian government follows through with the reforms under discussion in peace talks.

Havana - Cuba's retired leader Fidel Castro has been seen in photographs for the first time in five months, meeting with a student leader in an apparent bid to scotch rumors about his health.

Havana - The Colombian government lashed out at leftist FARC guerrillas Tuesday for failing to actively work to dismantle minefields present in half the country's municipalities.

Havana - Cuban state media released the first photographs of former president Fidel Castro in nearly six months in a bid to quiet rumors that his health is failing.

Havana - Leftist FARC guerrillas resumed peace talks with the Colombian government Monday in Cuba, after a year-end break.

Havana - Fidel Castro is "in very good health," a Brazilian activist said Wednesday, a day after meeting the former Cuban leader after weeks of feverish speculation concerning the 88-year-old's medical condition.

Havana - In the midst of rejoicing at the re-opening of ties between the US and Cuba, the US has not demanded minimum standards of human rights from the Communist state, and the case of five men languishing in jail is forgotten my the mainstream media.

Havana - Cuban leader Fidel Castro has broken his silence on a historic rapprochement between Washington and Havana, implicitly endorsing it even as he expressed an abiding distrust of his old foe.

Havana - Fidel Castro does not "trust the US, nor have I spoken with them," the revolutionary icon, 88, said in a letter attributed to him and read out on state television Monday.

Havana - The highest-ranking US official to visit Cuba in three decades met with leading dissidents, but one prominent opposition figure stayed out amid differences over Washington's rapprochement with Havana.

Havana - Cuban officials and the highest-level US delegation to visit Havana in 35 years held landmark talks Thursday on reopening embassies, but both sides warned that normalizing ties would take time.

Havana - U.S. and Cuban officials welcomed the first day of their historic diplomatic talks in Havana on Wednesday as "productive" and "constructive" despite lingering differences over migration issues.