Trading their warmest words in half a century, the US and Cuba signalled a rapprochement yesterday as President Obama announced that he was seeking "a new beginning" with the island’s communist regime.

Cuba was the only country not represented as leaders of the Americas gathered in Trinidad for a summit. Amid growing optimism about fresh diplomatic moves, the head of the Organisation of American States said that he would ask his group to invite the country back after 47 years of absence.

Mr Obama reiterated his desire to improve relations with Havana. "I know there is a longer journey that must be travelled in overcoming decades of mistrust, but there are critical steps we can take toward a new day," he said according to excerpts of remarks he is due to make at the opening ceremony, released in advance by the White House.

The flurry of gestures began this week when Mr Obama ended restrictions on travel and remittances to Cuba, challenging his Cuban counterpart, Raúl Castro, to reciprocate. Last night Mr Obama renewed his promise to engage with the Cuban Government "on a wide range of issues", including human rights, free speech, democratic reform, drugs, immigration and the economy. "I do believe that we can move US-Cuban relations in a new direction."

Mr Castro had declared that he was ready to discuss "human rights, freedom of the press, political prisoners — everything".

Major moves were made to bring Cuba in from the cold today as José Miguel Insulza, Secretary-General of the Organisation of American States (OAS), said he would ask the body to reinstate the membership of the communist island almost 50 years after it was ousted.

“We’re going step by step,” Mr Insulza said, indicating that he would request Cuba’s readmittance to the OAS when the body meets in Honduras at the end of May. The move is all but certain to have been given a green light from Washington as the US contributes 70 per cent of the OAS budget, which affords it a high level of influence.

Leaders at the summit have been braced for an ugly battle over US policy on Cuba, with many in the region arguing that Washington's recent moves on the Castros' Cuba, leaving in place the crippling embargo, fall short of meaningful change.

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