Is Cuba ready to sit down and talk to the U.S. about putting our differences aside?

With Fidel Castro silenced by his ailments and on the sidelines, his brother Raul, at a Cuban military parade on Saturday, told his troops of his willingness to talk to the U.S. in an effort to end the almost half century old economic embargo put in place by the U.S. government.

During this speech he attacked American foreign policy and their involvement in the Iraq war, yet offered to end decades of hostility between the two countries.

Raul Castro 'ready' to talk to US

CUBA'S communist interim leader Raul Castro, in a shift from the tack of his ailing brother Fidel Castro, has overnight pushed for negotiations with the United States to end decades of tense ties.

"Let me take this opportunity to express our willingness to settle the long US-Cuba disagreement at the negotiating table," Raul Castro told troops at Cuba's first military parade in a decade.

"Of course, that is, as long as they accept that we are a country that does not tolerate any reduction of its independence, and based on the principles of equality, reciprocity, non interference and mutual respect," Raul Castro added, speaking before Communist Party and military leaders.

"Until that happens, after almost half a century, we are prepared to wait patiently for the moment when common sense takes root in the halls of power in Washington," Raul Castro said.

Mr Castro has been filling in for his brother Fidel, 80, since Fidel Castro - Cuba's leader since 1959 - underwent intestinal surgery in July.

The policy of willingness to talk with the United States if respected as an equal is standing Cuban policy.

But Fidel Castro has not reached out to the United States, much less publicly, on a regular basis.

And Raul Castro's timing and mentioning the negotiating table - as Cuba is consolidating its changing of the communist guard - suggests some growing autonomy on his part.

The fact that the 80-year-old Castro did not make an expected public appearance during his week long birthday celebration is an indication to many that he remains gravely ill and is very likely to never return as the leader of the Cuban people.

Cuban President Fidel Castro remains in the hospital Tuesday night after undergoing surgery for gastrointestinal bleeding.

The Cuban government has not issued any new statements on the health of the their president, that has forced him to temporarily hand over power to his younger brother Raul.

Fidel Castro has ruled with absolute power in Cuba since 1959, while his 75-year-old brother controlled the country's armed forces as Cuba's defense minister.

Cuban exiles eye change in Cuba

The provisional transfer of power in Cuba from Fidel Castro to his brother, Raul, is not expected to result in any immediate easing of communist control of the island nation.

But it has accelerated planning by Cuban exiles and others for a post-Castro Cuba. And it is raising concerns about whether the emerging transition in Cuba will remain peaceful or turn violent.

The announcement on Cuban television that Mr. Castro was about to undergo surgery and had temporarily turned over control of the government to Defense Minister Raul Castro sparked jubilant celebrations in Miami. Hundreds of Cuban-Americans took to the streets in Hialeah and Little Havana Monday and Tuesday, waving Cuban flags, cheering, and dancing. They included three generations of Cuban-Americans, the original exiles from the early 1960s, their children, and their grandchildren.

"It has been 50 years of dictatorship, so Cubans in Miami and all over the world are excited about the possibility that finally there can be change," says Camila Ruiz-Gallardo of the Cuban American National Foundation. "There is a light at the end of the tunnel."

As news of Fidel Castro's illness broke, less than two weeks before his 80th birthday, Cuban expatriates celebrated in the streets of Little Havana in Miami, causing traffic gridlock in that section of the Florida city.

Gov. Bush: State would try to prevent mass migration

Gov. Jeb Bush said today that state and federal officials would try to prevent a mass migration from Cuba if Fidel Castro dies from his current medical complications or the situation becomes more chaotic on the island.

Bush said he urged the creation of a national plan four years ago, which would include the Coast Guard halting Cubans fleeing their home country in hopes of convincing other Cubans not to take to the open seas.

"You don't want to have mass migration that creates the loss of life and creates tremendous hardships for local communities and for our state," Bush said. "We've already seen what the impacts of mass migration are. Better to have an orderly process and a focus on the transition."

By early this afternoon, the U.S. Coast Guard was simply monitoring the situation along coastal waters and abroad, Petty Officer James Judge said.

"In the event of a mass migration, we would be picking people up at sea" as well as delivering water and offering medical attention, Judge said.

U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, the Senate's only Cuban-born member, said today that he believes news of Fidel Castro's transfer of power marks the end of his reign over Cuba.

The U.S. government has been closely monitoring the health of Fidel Castro for some time now, quitely preparing for his death.

"We can't speculate on Castro's health, but we continue to work for the day of Cuba's freedom," White House spokesman Peter Watkins said today

A new report, to be released next week, calls on the U.S. "to put in place preparations that will ensure that the U.S. will be in a position to provide technical assistance in the first two weeks after a determination that a Cuban transition is under way."

Even though Castro's brother, Raul, is believed to be in line to take over the reins of the Cuban government, the U.S. believes the transitional government will ask the U.S. for assistance.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. should have assistance in Cuba within weeks of President Fidel Castro's death to support a transitional government and help move the country toward democracy, a government report recommends.

Report: Get ready for post-Castro Cuba

The report was prepared by the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, an interagency group co-chaired by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, a Cuban-American.

President Bush created the commission in 2003 to "help hasten and ease Cuba's democratic transition," according to its Web site.

The report, obtained by CNN in advance of its scheduled release next week, is billed as a strategic plan to promote democracy on the island once Castro is no longer in power.

"The U.S. government will need to be prepared well in advance to help in the event assistance is requested by the Cuban transition government," the report says.

While noting that Castro has plans for a successor, the commission says the message that the U.S. would assist a democratic Cuba could bolster democratic forces in the country and create an environment where democracy and economic reforms could thrive.

Lending a hand with health care and clean water would be good starts, the report says.

The six months immediately following Castro's death or ouster would be key to determining U.S. success in the mission, the report says.

"This critical 180-day period could mean the difference between a successful transition period and the stumbles and missteps that have slowed other states in their transitions toward democracy," the report says.

It calls for an $80 million "democratic fund" for two years to strengthen civil society, boost opposition to Castro's regime and facilitate the free flow of information. It recommends at least $20 million a year for democracy programs "until the dictatorship ceases to exist."

The report recommends offering a substantial aid package to the transitional government if it met certain criteria under the 1996 Helms-Burton Act.

"Despite extensive planning for a full transition, it seems more likely that after Fidel Castro's departure, we will see a socialist successor government that will decide whether, where, and how fast to reform the policies it inherits," said Cuba expert Philip Peters.