Rare poll finds Cuban citizens favor better US relations

WASHINGTON (AP) — A rare poll of Cuban public opinion has found that most of the island's citizens approve of normal relations with the United States and large majorities want more tourists to visit and the expansion of private business ownership.

In a poll of 840 people taken in Cuba late last year by the independent research organization NORC at the University of Chicago, 55 percent said that normal relations with the U.S. would be mostly good for the country.

President Donald Trump has pledged to reverse former President Barack Obama's 2 1/2-year-old opening with Cuba, which restored full diplomatic relations and allowed a dramatic expansion of U.S. travel to the island.

Critics of closer relations argue the added revenue has funded a repressive single-party system without helping ordinary Cubans.

[...] thousands of new private enterprises, primarily bed-and-breakfasts and restaurants, are allowing many Cubans to forge livelihoods independent of the state.

The poll reflects this complex reality, with Cubans expressing pessimism about the government's management of the economy while supporting better ties with the U.S. and hoping for increased privatization.