U.S. envoy goes to Cuba to help support emerging private sector

Text of media note released by the State Department on Friday (Oct. 30.)

“Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State David H. Thorne (in photo at top) will travel to Havana on November 1-3 to meet with government officials and business leaders, with the goal of supporting Cuba’s emerging private sector as part of the Department’s ‘Shared Prosperity Agenda.’

“José Raúl Perales, Assistant Secretary for the Private Sector at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, will accompany Ambassador Thorne.

“The delegation will meet with government officials and have discussions with entrepreneurs, visit the Mariel Port, and attend the inauguration of the U.S.-Cuba Business Council and the opening ceremony of the 33rd annual Havana International Fair (FIHAV), Havana’s largest annual multi-sector trade fair.”

Following is an excerpt from the State Department’s official biography of Senior Advisor Thorne:

“Ambassador [to Italy] David Thorne was named Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State in August 2013. Among other duties, Secretary [John] Kerry has asked Thorne to lead a Department-wide effort to position economic and commercial issues more prominently within the U.S. foreign policy landscape.

“Ambassador Thorne is also working to elevate the importance of entrepreneurship, technology, and innovation in the State Department’s promotion of global prosperity.”

Following is an excerpt from the Homeland Security department’s official biography of Puerto Rican-born José Raúl Perales:

“Perales advises the Secretary [Jeh Johnson] on the impact of the Department’s policies, regulations, and processes on private sector companies, universities, and not-for-profit institutions and enhances strategic communications in order to help the public and private sectors jointly meet their shared responsibility for homeland security.”