US will not send official delegation to Castro funeral

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON

The U.S. will not send an official delegation to attend the funeral of deceased former Cuban President Fidel Castro, the White House said Tuesday.

"The president has decided not to send a presidential delegation to attend the memorial service today," spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters.

Instead, Obama's deputy national security advisor Ben Rhodes and the U.S.'s Cuba envoy Jeff DeLaurentis will represent the U.S. at the Tuesday evening memorial ceremony, Earnest said.

"We believe that this was an appropriate way for the United States to show our commitment to an ongoing future-oriented relationship with the Cuban people and this is an appropriate way to show respect, to participate in the events that are planned for this evening," he said.

Rhodes has been one of the central figures in promoting the normalization of relations with the island nation.

Earnest said that a formal delegation will not attend Castro's funeral services because the U.S. continues "to have some significant concerns about the way the Cuban government currently operates, particularly with regard to protecting the basic human rights of the Cuban people."

Castro was a fiery icon of anti-imperialism, and has been derided by critics for his oftentimes harsh crackdown on political dissidents and minority groups in the island nation.

Obama has worked tirelessly to flesh out ties with Cuba following a diplomatic opening with the former Cold War adversary that was announced in December 2014.

President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to renegotiate the normalization, and possibly end it altogether.