Cuba and the European Union formally restored ties on Thursday, signing a cooperation agreement that put an end to five years of chilly relations, officials said.

The agreement was signed in Havana by Cuban Foreign Minster Felipe Perez Roque and European development commissioner Louis Michel.

The talks here followed an EU decision in June to lift sanctions imposed against Havana in 2003 for the imprisonment of more than 70 dissidents, and for the execution of three men convicted of hijacking a passenger ferry and demanding it be taken to the United States.

The EU decision to restore ties represents a setback for the United States, which failed to convince eastern European allies in the 27-nation bloc to try to block the move.

EU officials have said they will review the human rights situation in Cuba every year.

Normalisation of European ties with Havana was championed by Spain, which restored its relations with Cuba last year.

Cuban dissidents also have criticised the EU's move, arguing that human rights in Cuba have not improved.

AFP