( CNN ) -- Right-wing U.S. Republicans are up in arms over Cuba again . Their ostensible cause for concern is last week 's visit to the island by Beyoncé and Jay-Z , who were photographed in Havana , apparently celebrating their wedding anniversary . Read more : Lawmakers ask why Beyoncé and Jay-Z went to Cuba . These blinkered conservatives need to get over themselves . The 60-year stand-off between the U.S. and Cuba is absurd . It is counterproductive and harmful to both countries . It is time to end this Cold War anachronism , kiss and make up . Anger over Beyoncé 's supposed breach of the U.S. embargo rules restricting American citizens ' travel to Cuba is symbolic of a deeper fear among right-wingers . Two key factors have changed since the days -- not so long ago -- when Washington seemed to be regularly threatening the Castro government with Iraq-style overthrow . One is that George W. Bush has been replaced by a Democrat . As Barack Obama enters his second and final term , immune to electoral imperatives , conservatives worry he may use his freedom of action to effect an historic rapprochement with Cuba . American liberals certainly believe he should do so . The second change is in Cuba itself , where the government , now led by Fidel Castro 's brother , Raoul , has embarked on a cautious program of reform . The government -- dubbed the world 's longest-running dictatorship by the American right -- has even set a date for its own dissolution . Doing what `` dictators '' rarely do , Raoul Castro announced in February that in 2018 , he would hand over power and that any successor would be subject to term limits . The Castro brothers have reportedly chosen a career communist , first vice president Miguel Diaz-Canel , to succeed them . But in reality , once their grip on power is relaxed , anything may happen . The two Florida Republicans who have been making a fuss about the Beyonce visit are Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart . They are veterans , and beneficiaries , of the anti-Castro campaign that has long been waged from Little Havana , in Miami , the home to the state 's large Cuban exile population . The Cuban vote , as it is known , has traditionally gone to Republicans . But Obama 's approach is the antithesis of the politics of hate and division . He broke that mold last year , making big gains among the Cuban American electorate . This result suggested the polarized ethnically-based politics of the past may be breaking down , said Julia Sweig of the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations in a recent article in The National Interest . `` Having won nearly half of the Cuban American vote in Florida in 2012 , a gain of 15 percentage points over 2008 , Obama can move quickly on Cuba . If he were to do so , he would find a cautious but willing partner in Raúl Castro , who needs rapprochement with Washington to advance his own reform agenda , '' Sweig said . Little wonder Republicans like Ros-Lehtinen are worried . If things go on like this , they could lose a large piece of their political raison d'etre . There are other reasons for believing the time is right for Obama to end the Cuba stalemate . The recent death of Hugo Chavez , Venezuela 's influential president , has robbed Havana of a strong supporter , both political and financial . Chavez was not interested in a rapprochement with the U.S. , either by Cuba or Venezuela . His revolutionary beliefs did not allow for an accommodation with the American `` imperialists . '' His successors may not take so militant a line , especially given that Venezuela continues to trade heavily with the U.S. , a privilege not allowed Cuba . The so-called `` pink tide '' that has brought several left-wing leaders to power in Latin America in the past decade is not exactly on the ebb , but the hostility countries such as Brazil , Ecuador and Bolivia felt towards the Bush administration has abated . In fact , according to Sweig 's article , U.S. business with Latin America as a whole is booming , up 20 % in 2011 . The U.S. imports more crude oil from Venezuela and Mexico than from the Persian Gulf , including Saudi Arabia . The U.S. does three times more business with Latin America than with China . The stand-off over Cuba is an obstacle to advancing U.S. interests and business in Latin American countries , and vice versa . The continuation of the embargo has left the U.S. almost totally isolated at the United Nations , and at sharp odds with its major allies , including Britain and the EU . But more importantly , the continued ostracism of Cuba 's people -- for they , not the Havana government , are the biggest losers -- is unfair , unkind and unnecessary . If the U.S. wants full democracy in Cuba , then it should open up fully to ordinary Cubans . Tear down the artificial walls that separate the people of the two countries and , as Mao Zedong once said , let a hundred flowers bloom . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Simon Tisdall .
Beyoncé and Simon Tisdall were seen in United States 2012 , apparently celebrating their anniversary . A Cuba embargo restricts Democrat citizens ' right to visit Cuba . Simon Tisdall argues the 60-year stand-off between Cuba and the U.S. harms both countries . The ostracism of Cuba 's people is unfair , unkind and unnecessary , he says .