Next Round of U.S.-Cuba Talks Feb. 27 in Washington

The United States and Cuba will hold their second round of talks on normalizing relations in Washington on February 27, the State Department said Tuesday.

"I can confirm that the talks will be held on the 27th here at the State Department - the 27th of February," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters.

The first round of talks were held at the end of January in Havana, with the two countries discussing reopening embassies and renewing ties that have been severed for more than 50 years.

US President Barack Obama and Cuba's Raul Castro took the world by surprise December 17 when they announced that they would begin normalizing ties.

Washington has since taken steps to ease certain restrictions on trade and travel, while Cuba released 53 prisoners sought by the United States.

But Castro has cautioned that relations between the two Cold War-era foes will not return to normal until the United States lifts an embargo imposed in 1962.

Obama also has come under fire from Republicans, and some Democrats, and expectations were low that the U.S. Congress would move any time soon to lift the embargo.

Three Democratic senators -- Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Mark Warner of Virginia -- were in Havana when the State Department announced the forthcoming talks.

"We look with hope and expectations to the meetings next week in Washington," Warner told reporters.

They said lifting the embargo would require a bipartisan effort.

"One of the reasons we came on this trip was that we could go back and tell our colleagues what we've seen: That there are more and more people engaged in private sector business, that there is an entrepreneurial spirit here," Klobuchar said.

"The people want to see better relations with the U.S."