Cuban top legislator concludes Vietnam visit

Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee for External Relations Vu Hai Ha and Cuban Ambassdor to Vietnam Orlando Nicolás Hernández Guillén sent off the Cuban top legislator and his entourage at the Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi.

Esteban Lazo Hernandez started his Vietnam visit on November 2. Vietnamese NA Chairman Tran Thanh Man hosted a red-carpet welcoming ceremony for the guest the same day, which was followed by their talks.

Party General Secretary To Lam and State President Luong Cuong separatedly hosted the Cuban top legislator.

The visit had a significant meaning, helping continue reinforcing and promoting cooperation between the two parliaments, and contributing to further deepening the special solidarity and brotherhood between Vietnam and Cuba.

During the Cuban leader's visit, leaders of the two countries agreed that 64 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the solidarity and close relationship between Vietnam and Cuba, nurtured by President Ho Chi Minh and leader Fidel Castro, have continuously developed, becoming a model in international relations.

The Party, State, and people of Vietnam treasure and are determined to further deepen the special, exemplary, and faithful relationship between Vietnam and Cuba through channels and across all fields, while working together with the Cuban people to maintain, develop, and pass on to next generations.

The special traditional friendship between Vietnam and Cuba has been constantly consolidated and enhanced through all channels of the Party, State, parliamentary cooperation, and people-to-people exchange, while becoming increasingly deep and substantive in all fields of politics, economics - trade, security - defence, and science - technology,

The two countries’ special relationship has seen many positive developments after the state visit to Cuba by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam in September. During this visit, the two sides issued a Joint Statement with the determination to continue strongly developing bilateral ties to a new height that is more comprehensive, substantive, effective, and sustainable, in the spirit of cooperation, development for the cause of socialism development and building, for the benefit of the two peoples, and for peace, cooperation, and development in each region and the world over.

Vietnam affirms that the country stands in solidarity with Cuba. Vietnam has called for the lifting of unilateral blockade and embargo against Cuba and the removal of Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Vietnam wishes to further deepen and enhance the effectiveness of ties with Cuba in all fields, making the most of the strengths of both sides in the context that the two countries are to celebrate the 65th anniversary of their bilateral of diplomatic relations in 2025 (December 2, 1960 - 2025), which has been named the Vietnam - Cuba Friendship Year by the two countries' high-ranking leaders.

The top legislator of Cuba thanked the Party, State, and people of Vietnam for presenting 10,000 tonnes of rice to Cuba, emphasising this is a timely sharing in the context that Cuba is facing a food and energy crisis.

The two sides showed their delight at the development of the two countries’ parliaments with high-level visits and important cooperative activities, deepening the relationship between the two legislatures, and contributing to consolidating and strengthening the special, exemplary and faithful relationship between Vietnam and Cuba.

To realise the cooperation protocol signed between the two legislative bodies in April last year, the first session of the Vietnam - Cuba Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation Committee, co-chaired by President Esteban Lazo Hernandez and Vice NA Chairman Nguyen Duc Hai, took place in September, with results recognised by both countries' high-ranking leaders and included in the Vietnam-Cuba Joint Statement. This reaffirmed the two legislatures’ determination in further deepening relations between the two countries through parliamentary cooperation channels.

Specifically, the two NAs continue to exchange their all-level delegations, committees, and deputies, and friendly parliamentarians groups to share professional experiences in law-making, supervision and decision-making on important matters of the country, while enhancing information exchange and experience sharing in direct or online formats on holding parliament activities, building, and perfecting institutions and legal systems in areas of mutual interest.

The two sides agreed to actively and effectively implement the high-level commitments and agreements reached during the State visit to Cuba by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam in September 2024 as well as the results of the first session of the Vietnam - Cuba Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation Committee, while continuing to closely coordinate with and support each other at international organisations and multilateral forums./.