Cuba, US to 'maintain communication'after third round of talks

The third round of Cuba-US talks meant to restore diplomatic relations ended after one day's effort, agreeing to "maintain the communication" toward normalisation of ties between the two countries, said a press release from the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Minrex) Tuesday.

The Cuban ministry didn't disclose what was discussed in Monday 's meeting, which was held in Havana, the capital of Cuba, behind closed doors, only stressing the meeting took place in a " professional climate," Xinhua reported.

The Cuban team participating at the talks was led by Josefina Vidal, director general for the Minrex's US Division; and the American team was headed by Roberta Jacobson, assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the US State Department.

The US severed its diplomatic ties with Cuba in 1961 and has imposed an embargo on the island country ever since.

President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro announced in December that they have agreed to restore diplomatic relations, in a move to end more than half a century of estrangement between the two countries.

The two sides have held two rounds of talks in hopes of reopening embassies before a regional summit in April.