Vietnam - Cuba: Timeless friendship

TIN LIÊN QUAN
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Madame Ambassador, you have recently started working in Vietnam. How do you assess the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba?

Vietnam and Cuba formally established diplomatic relations on December 2, 1960. Cuba has always considered its relationship with Vietnam a priority in its foreign policy. Over the past 57 years, despite challenging situations around the world, the solidarity and brotherly relationship between Vietnam and Cuba, founded by President Fidel Castro and President Ho Chi Minh, continues to grow in strength, with close links developing in many areas.

President Tran Dai Quang and Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Lianys Torres Rivera. (Photo: VNA)

Some might say relations between the two countries are not only based on mutual support and cohesion between the two Parties, States and Governments, but also cultivated through Vietnamese and Cuban citizens – from students and engineers to diplomats and doctors. These are the people writing the beautiful pages of our bilateral relationship.

Currently, along with robust political relations, the economic and trade cooperation between the two countries is also experiencing significant developments. Leaders of both Parties, States and Governments are constantly carrying out official visits in order to improve their understanding, thus contributing to promoting effective bilateral relations and expanding exchanges to Ministries, departments and sectors. President Tran Dai Quang made an official visit to Cuba in November 2016. National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan attended a ceremony to commemorate the Cuban leader Fidel Castro at La Habana in 2016. President of Cuba's parliament, Esteban Lazo Hernández, paid an official visit to Vietnam from June 11 to 18, 2017.

These activities occur not just at the State level. Over the past years, many ministries, agencies and organisations from the two countries have maintained regular exchanges with many exciting cooperative events.

How has this year been in terms of cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba?

2017 can be considered a typical year with a great deal of new steps taken in bilateral relations. The two sides have made a number of comprehensive and effective exchanges from the State level to ministries, departments, political organisations, as well as economic, trade and investment sectors.

The two sides successfully organised the Third Conference of theories between the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Communist Party of Cuba and the 35th session of the Intergovernmental Committee of Vietnam - Cuba. This year, Vietnam’s high-level visits to Cuba included those by Deputy Chairwoman of the National Assembly Tong Thi Phong, Minister of Defense Ngo Xuan Lich, Minister of Public Security To Lam, Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung and Head of the Central Propaganda Department Vo Van Thuong. From the Cuban side, there were visits to Vietnam by President of the National Assembly Esteban Lazo, Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces Leopoldo Cintra Frias, Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment Rodrigo Malmierca Diaz and Head of the Foreign Affairs Department of the Communist Party of Cuba Jose Ramon Balaguer Cabrera.

The visits affirmed the comprehensive cooperation between the two countries in many fields, from politics and defense to trade and investment.

Over the last 57 years, diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Cuba have been based on sustainable development with the spirit of mutual support in the international area. However, two-way trade turnover stood at only 250 million USD in 2016, falling short of the potential between the two countries. In the future, what areas should we focus on to boost trade and bring economic cooperation to meet its potential?

Bilateral relations between Cuba and Vietnam are developing extensively in many sectors. We are trying to enhance, step by step, economic, trade and investment relations on a par with our strong political ties. Currently, several Vietnamese corporations and companies have begun to pay attention and intend to invest in Cuba. We hope that more Vietnamese investors will come to Cuba in the near future.

Cuba is also promoting health cooperation with Vietnam, including bringing Cuban doctors to work in Vietnam, and bringing pharmaceutical products, a strength of our country, to the Vietnamese market.

Cuba honoured the death of Cuba’s Great Leader and brilliant revolutionary Fidel Castro in November this year. Can you share the sentiments as well as the contributions of Cuba and President Fidel Castro to Vietnam's revolutionary cause, and also the development of friendship and cooperation between the two countries?

After the success of the Cuban Revolution, the revolutionary government, in many forms, demonstrated its solidarity with the Vietnamese people in the struggle against foreign invaders, to regain their freedom and unify the country.

Vietnam - Cuba relations will grow stronger and stronger. (Photo: VGP)

Cuba was the first country to establish a Solidarity Committee with the National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam. During the war, Cuba supported and assisted Vietnam with consultative activities in construction and sent a group of Cuban doctors to help. After the glorious victory of the Vietnamese Revolution in 1975 and the reunification of the country, Cuba continued to assist Vietnam in many areas and sectors.

Fidel Castro always supported the cause of freedom of the Vietnamese people and stood ready to help Vietnam when the country was terribly devastated by the war. In 1973, Fidel was the first and only foreign leader to visit the Vietnam Liberation Front. The image of him holding the flag of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam during that visit became a heroic symbol and a source of inspiration for the revolutionary soldiers of Vietnam at the time.

President Fidel made three visits to Vietnam: in 1973, before the liberation, and then in 1995 and 2003. During all of his visits, President Fidel had the chance to feel the love that Vietnamese people have for him and this served as an inspiration for him to continue contributing to the development of the relationship between the two countries.

During his time as Prime Minister, President and even after he stepped down, during all meetings with Vietnamese leaders, Fidel Castro always emphasised a desire to further promote the relationship between the two countries. This relationship has become a model for international relations.

Fidel once said that the relationship between Vietnam and Cuba is "a friendship that goes beyond common sense". The two countries are not only tied diplomatically, but also as “a family”, Cuba-Vietnam solidarity is “a timeless symbol”. It can be said that these statements summarise the special solidarity between the two countries.

If relations between Vietnam and Cuba are considered a timeless symbol of brotherhood, then President Fidel Castro and President Ho Chi Minh are the examples of that symbol.

Fidel always attached great importance to developing relations with Vietnam, considering Vietnam a very close brother. Just like his immortal saying: “For Vietnam, Cuba is willing to dedicate its own blood”, the strength of the relationship has been shown and entered into the history of ties between the two countries.

Even today, that spirit continues through the State and people of the two countries. A great number of schools and organisations in Cuba are named after Vietnamese figures. Thousands of young Vietnamese have come to Cuba to study. Many experts and workers were also sent to Vietnam to support the process of rebuilding the country after the war.

We are also grateful for the sincere sentiments of the Vietnamese people for Fidel Castro. In 2018, the two countries will celebrate 45 years of Fidel's first visit to Vietnam. Following the spirit that Fidel Castro left behind, we need to continue to develop and further strengthen the special relationship of solidarity and friendship between our two countries.

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