Washington: The United States stuck to its policy of isolating Cuba despite the exit of its old nemesis Fidel Castro, saying it was waiting to see whether Havana was now on the road to democracy.

The ailing 81-year-old Castro may have marked an anti-climactic end to an era that began in the Cold War by quietly resigning as president, but he has left a deep thorn in Washington s side that may prove hard to remove.

Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte indicated yesterday as much when, asked by reporters if Washington planned to lift nearly a half century of economic sanctions, he said: "I don t imagine that happening anytime soon."

London-based Amnesty International yesterday urged Washington to end the embargo which it said only hurts the Cuban people.

And unlike European allies, Washington still refused to open in a dialogue with Cuba, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters. "I would say these are tactical differences and we have the same strategic objectives."

President George W. Bush reiterated a policy aimed at isolating Washington s southern neighbor when he said during a trip to Africa yesterday that the change in leadership ought to begin "a democratic transition."

Bush said the "first step" was for Havana to release political prisoners, and urged the international community to help build democratic institutions in Cuba.

"And we re going to help," the US president said in Rwanda.

Source : PTI