Obama arrives in Cuba, launching historic visit

In an historic moment of rapprochement that would have seemed impossible just a few years ago, President Obama landed at Havana’s José Martí International Airport on Sunday afternoon, kicking off the first visit to Cuba from a sitting U.S. president since 1928 and launching a new phase in the relationship between the two countries.

Obama stepped off of Air Force One along with First Lady Michelle Obama, his daughters Malia and Sasha, and his mother-in-law Marian Robinson. He greeted various officials on the tarmac before speeding off in a car.

The idea of an American president visiting Cuba while a Castro remains in power may have once been unthinkable, but things have been changing very quickly ever since the two countries moved to normalize ties in 2014. Since then, the U.S. has relaxed a string of economic and travel restrictions that had been in place against Cuba, though the trade embargo remains in place.

Obama is set to stay in Cuba until Tuesday, holding talks with president Raúl Castro, meeting with dissidents and delivering a speech to the Cuban people.