Advertisement

  1. National

Freed Cuban agents given heroes' welcomes as they land back home

Thee Cuban intelligence agents have been given heroes' welcomes as they landed back in their homeland after 16 years in prison in the US.

It comes as US President Barack Obama announced his country will restore diplomatic relations it severed with Cuba more than 50 years ago.

As part of a prisoner swap under the new policy, Cuba freed American Alan Gross in exchange for the three Cubans held by the United States.

View all 16 updates ›

Pope Francis congratulates US and Cuba on agreement

Pope Francis welcomed the move towards normalising US-Cuban relations. Credit: Reuters

Pope Francis has congratulated the United States and Cuba on their decision to establish diplomatic relations, and the Vatican said it was ready to support the strengthening of bilateral relations.

In a statement, the Vatican also confirmed that its diplomats facilitated talks between the two countries, "resulting in solutions acceptable to both parties."

More top news