IN the 37-year history of America's embargo on Cuba, few weeks may prove as pivotal as this one.
Illinois Governor George Ryan scored a publicity coup - and drew fierce charges that he was undermining Washington - with a five-day mission to Havana capped by a surprise marathon chat with Fidel Castro.
Although Mr Ryan made a relatively low-key departure from Chicago, his bridge-building trip soon claimed the national spotlight, thanks in part to criticism from the State Department.
As the first American governor to meet Dr Castro since 1959, he has also raised politically advantageous hopes in his home state by ensuring local wheat farmers would be well-placed when the embargo is finally lifted.
Making a thoroughly capitalist point, the ageing communist dictator told Mr Ryan his farmers had missed out on US$20 billion (HK$155 billion) in grain sales over the past four decades.
'The groundwork has been laid,' Mr Ryan said on his return. 'We leave here today knowing those bridges are firmly in place. I believe we have established a line of communication that will help all the people.' He also escorted back a severely ill seven-year-old boy with a blood condition that cannot be treated by Cuba'a once-formidable health system, which has declined in part because of the embargo.