The European Parliament overwhelmingly approved today a first-ever cooperation deal between the EU and Cuba, despite lingering concerns about human rights violations in the communist-ruled country. MEPs in the eastern French city of Strasbourg approved the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement, signed in December 2016, which is widely seen as a European riposte to US President Donald Trump's hardline stance against Havana.<br/><br/>With the deal, Cuba joins other Latin American countries with similar agreements with the EU, whose relations with the island had previously been conducted within the so-called Common Position that linked ties to improvements in human rights.