“Here we are welcoming him, the old and new friends he has in Cuba,” assured the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, after the warm embrace with which, early Thursday morning, he welcomed To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party and President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, to Cuba.
That meeting, which took place in one of the protocol rooms of the National Hotel, was the prelude to an intense work agenda that included the visit of both leaders to the Mariel Special Development Zone.
We are convinced, said the Cuban Head of State, that their visit “will mark an important milestone in the strengthening of our relations,” which have deep and historic ties.
Díaz-Canel thanked the “friend and brother” for “the gesture that one of his first international visits has been precisely to Cuba,” and also for “the strong words of unconditional support” he has expressed regarding our struggle against the unjust economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on us by the U.S. government, as well as the exclusion of Cuba from the list of nations that allegedly sponsor terrorism.
After reiterating our country’s condolences for the loss of human lives and the material damage caused in Vietnam by the recent passage of Typhoon Yagi, the Cuban dignitary ratified Cuba’s willingness to help that sister nation with a medical brigade, should it need it.
Many of the present leaders in Cuba, explained Díaz-Canel, we are from a generation that was born during the early years of the Revolution, and grew up hearing about Vietnam, and admiring the heroism of its people.
“You are an important reference for us,” said the president, who highlighted the “hard work, kindness and patriotism that distinguish the Vietnamese,” and reassured his counterpart that “Cuba’s feelings towards Vietnam are unchanging.”
The world has undergone many changes, commented President To Lam, but “the friendship and solidarity of Vietnam and Cuba will never change.”
In good times and in difficult times Cuba has been by our side, he recalled, and therefore “we will not forget the heroic support in our past struggles, and also today, although we are at two ends of the planet.”
After asserting that Cuba “has always been at the forefront of Vietnam’s foreign relations”, the friendly leader reiterated that “our position will always be to support Cuba.”
He also thanked for the messages of condolences and support expressed after the recent passage of Typhoon Yagi through his country. “We not only share the difficulties of the blockade, but also those brought about by natural disasters,” he stressed.
This visit, To Lam said, will not only allow us to develop our relations in a more efficient and practical way for the benefit of our countries, but also for the benefit of the leftist, socialist and communist movements in the world.
Hence the importance he gave, in his words, to “consolidate solidarity and mutual support.”
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