But in nearby Little Havana, the heart of Miami’s 1.6m Cuban-American community, there was suspicion and dismay at Obama’s warmth towards Castro, 82, who was appointed president in 2008 by his ailing brother Fidel, now 87.

Rosa Maria Paya, 24, fled the island this summer, a year after her father, Oswaldo Paya, a leading opposition activist who demanded an end to one-party rule, was killed. She said his car had been repeatedly rammed by a vehicle with a Cuban intelligence agent behind the wheel.

“They tried to kill him the month before and this time they succeeded. They have never released the autopsy report. The rest of my family left after the intimidation and threats increased. There was a call to my house at 4am warning they would kill me.

“President Obama was shaking the hand of the killer of my father. People think that he is more reasonable than Fidel but they are mistaken. Violence has increased under Raul.”