Pritzker reinforces Cuba message

US Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker ? part of the family that created the Hyatt hotel fortune ? told Cuban officials that Washington wants to promote the Communist country?s nascent private sector in order to maximise trade and build on newly restored diplomatic relations.
Pritzker met with two Cuban ministers and one of its vice presidents on a two-day mission to learn more about the Cuban economy and explain Obama?s recent relaxation of the US trade embargo.
In remarks to Foreign Trade Minister Rodrigo Malmierca and other officials, Pritzker said the lives of ordinary Cubans would only see improvement if Cuban President Raul Castro?s market-oriented reforms were extended.
?We urge President Castro and his government to make it easier for Cuban citizens to trade and travel more freely, to enjoy the fruits of their labour, to access the Internet, and to be hired directly by foreign companies,? Pritzker said in remarks reported by Reuters.