CIA director meets with top officials in Havana, Cuban government says

A U.S. delegation led by CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Cuban Interior Ministry officials in Havana on Thursday.

The Cuban government announced the meeting through state-run media, stating that both sides expressed interest in developing bilateral cooperation between law enforcement agencies in the interest of the security of both countries as well as regional and international security.

Cuban officials also told the delegation that Cuba does not pose a threat to U.S. national security.

A U.S. government plane was observed departing Havana’s international airport on Thursday afternoon.

The direct engagement between the CIA director and Cuba’s Interior Ministry, which oversees the country’s intelligence services and internal security apparatus, marks an unusual high-level contact between the two longtime adversaries.

President Trump had said several days earlier that the two countries were “going to talk.”