Just a month after the federal government announced the easing of travel restrictions to Cuba, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo revealed plans to visit the island nation.
Spokeswoman Melissa DeRosa said in an email Saturday that Cuomo plans to lead a trade mission to Cuba to promote New York. She did not say when the governor would travel, adding that details would be announced later.
Cuba and the United States announced last month that the U.S. embargo on Cuba would be eased and diplomatic relations would be normalized.
DeRosa said the governor's trip to Cuba would be part of a "Global NY" initiative. Cuomo had previously announced that he plans trips to Israel, China, Mexico and elsewhere during his second term as governor.
The announcement comes as Vermont Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy leads a three-day congressional mission to Cuba.
The group of four Democratic senators and two Democratic representatives, all of whom strongly support Obama's policy, aims to get an idea from Cuban government officials of how they view the normalization process and convey a sense of what Americans expect.
