Wednesday, July 04, 2012

Cuban President Raul Castro Visits China and Vietnam

Castro visits China

Tuesday, 03 July 2012 15:22

HAVANA — Cuban leader Raul Castro left Havana on Sunday for official visits to China and Vietnam, the official Granma daily said yesterday.

Castro, president of Cuba’s Council of State and the Council of Ministers, will pay a state visit to China on July 4-7, the first one since he took office in 2008.

Vice President of the State Council Ricardo Cabrisas and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez were also part of the Cuban delegation, according to Granma

Cuba and China established diplomatic relations on September 28, 1960. Cuba was one of the first Latin American countries to recognise China, and both nations have maintained friendly ties based on co-operation and mutual solidarity.

Beijing is Havana’s second largest trading partner with their trade volume reaching about US$1 billion in 2010, according to official figures. Cuba and Vietnam established diplomatic ties in 1960.

Havana and Hanoi have supported each other on international occasions, and bilateral trade reached US$269 million in 2010.

Castro has been committed to an agenda of undergoing economic reforms to improve the economic model, which is partially based on the experiences of China and Vietnam in the past decades. — Xinhua.

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