Top Cuban legislator Esteban Lazo Hernandez begins Vietnam visit

The Cuban legislator and his entourage were welcomed at the airport by Vu Hai Ha, Chairman of the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs Committee, and Orlando Nicolás Hernández Guillén, Cuba’s Ambassador to Vietnam.

Vietnam and Cuba established diplomatic ties in December 1960. The two countries have treasured a long-standing friendship and cooperation for the past decades, with a strong bond rooted in their common socialist ideals and mutual support during their respective struggles for independence and development.

Both sides have maintained close political ties through high-level visits and exchanges. They have also supported each other in various international forums.

Economic ties have been strengthened over the years, with both countries seeking to enhance cooperation in trade, investment, agriculture, biotechnology, health care, culture, and tourism, among others.

Vietnam is the second largest Asian training partner and the largest Asian investor in Cuba. However, two-way trade turnover between the two countries remains modest, at US$57 million last year.

On April 1, 2020, the Vietnam-Cuba Trade Agreement signed in 2015 officially came into effect, introducing many new trade preferential commitments that benefit businesses in both countries and facilitate bilateral import-export activities.

Vietnamese enterprises are interested in and gradually expanding their investment cooperation in Cuba, particularly in the Mariel Special Economic Zone, focusing on essential consumer goods production, construction materials, and renewable energy.

The two-day working visit to Vietnam by the top Cuban legislator is expected to help further strengthen and promote cooperative relations between the two countries in general and the two legislatures in particular.