The Organization of American States lifted its 47-year suspension of Cuba in a move backed by Washington as it tries to soothe Cold War tensions with the communist-run island.

The 34-member hemispheric body, meeting in Honduras, unanimously scrapped a 1962 decision at the height of the Cold War that barred Cuba as revolutionary leader Fidel Castro took it toward communism and an alliance with the Soviet Union.

While leftists in Latin America hailed the OAS vote as a diplomatic victory for Cuba, Washington said it had succeeded in ensuring that Cuba cannot rejoin the group without moving toward democracy and respect for human rights.

Cuba's allies in Latin America instead called for Cuba to be allowed back in from the cold with no conditions, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came under heavy pressure at the OAS meeting here this week.

In a diplomatic compromise, the group's member countries agreed that Cuba's re-entry would be "the result of a process of dialogue" which Cuba has to request and must be in line with OAS principles.

Clinton said Cuba's return to the group -- which is little known in the United States and Canada but carries diplomatic weight in Latin America -- would now "turn on Cuba's commitment to the organization's values."

That was a reference to the OAS's commitment to defend democracy and human rights under a 2001 Democratic Charter.

"I am pleased that everyone came to agree that Cuba cannot simply take its seat and that we must put Cuba's participation to a determination down the road - if it ever chooses to seek reentry," she said.