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In the "neighborhood" of the Americas, Canada alone has maintained consistently cordial relations with Cuba, in spite of considerable pressure from the United States. In the first book-length study of the subject, John M. Kirk and Peter McKenna explore this unusual dynamic, focusing mainly on the period since 1959. They begin with the evolution of the Canadian-Cuban relationship, which was initially founded on pragmatic economic and commercial considerations. Cuba has always been one of Canada’s major trading partners in Latin America, and it is the second most popular vacation resort for Canadians. Subsequent chapters, ordered historically, explore each Canadian prime minister’s response to the revolutionary government in Havana. Changing personalities and ideologies in that office have had a significant impact on Canada’s Cuba policy. The authors also look at the relationship from the Cuban point of view: they draw on privileged interview and archival material from Cuba, including never-before-seen diplomatic records from Cuba’s Foreign Ministry, to create a thoroughly rounded portrait. In what is perhaps a controversial stance, the authors seek to use Canada’s Cuba policy as a lesson in good neighborliness for the United States, and they dedicate their book to "all those who struggle for the introduction of common sense, dignity, and justice into U.S.-Cuban relations."
John M. Kirk is professor of Latin American Studies at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He is the author of José Marti, Mentor of the Cuban Nation (UPF, 1983), Between God and the Party: Religion and Politics in Revolutionary Cuba (UPF, 1988), and Politics and the Catholic Church in Nicaragua (UPF, 1992) and has coedited five other books.
Peter McKenna is assistant professor of political science at Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia. He is the author of Canada and the OAS: From Dilettante to Full Partner (1995) and numerous articles on Canadian foreign policy.
1997. 296 pp. 6 X 9. ISBN 0-8130-1520-0
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"[A]bsolutely essential reading for those interested in either the international relations of Cuba or Canada, or both, and will reward those with an interest in US-Cuban relations as well." -- Latin American Studies "An invaluable contribution toward one of the
most pertinent and controversial policy issues on
Canada’s current hemispheric agenda. . . . Timely,
innovative, educational, sprightly written; fills an
important gap in the Canadian-Latin American
literature."--David H. Pollock, Norman Paterson
School of International Affairs, Carleton University,
Ottawa "A superbly written and researched book, it provides a much-needed and fascinating account of Canada’s relations with Cuba since Castro took power. Americans reading of Canada’s effective and principled policy toward Cuba can only shake their heads and wish their own government would be so sensible."--Wayne S. Smith, Johns Hopkins University and the Center for International Policy in Washington, D.C.
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