HAVANA — Cardinal Jaime Ortega, who oversaw a warming of relations with Cuba's Communist government and played a role in the secret negotiations that led to U.S.-Cuba detente, has stepped down, the Vatican announced Tuesday.

He is being replaced as archbishop of Havana by Juan de la Caridad Garcia Rodriguez, archbishop of the eastern city of Camaguey.

Ortega was named Archbishop of Havana in 1981 and oversaw three papal trips to communist Cuba. He ferried a letter from the Vatican to President Barack Obama during 18 months of secret negotiations that led to the Dec. 17, 2014, declaration that the U.S. and Cuba were restarting diplomatic relations.

Under his leadership, the Roman Catholic Church has quietly established itself as practically the only independent institution with any widespread influence on the island. Expanding into areas once dominated by the state, the church is providing tens of thousands of people with food, education, business training and even libraries.

The church said Pope Francis had accepted Ortega's resignation, which was presented in 2011 under a church rule requiring archbishops to offer their resignation at 75. His being kept on five more years was seen, particularly in retrospect, as a reflection of the importance of the Havana archdiocese at a critical time for Cuba.

The naming of Garcia, 67, as Ortega's replacement just a month after Obama's historic trip to Cuba shows a church focus on renewing religious observance on the island, said Enrique Lopez Oliva, a retired professor of religion.

“The church is starting a process of renovation in order to adapt itself to the new, historic moment that the country is living,” Lopez Oliva said.