Top Vietnamese leader To Lam arrives in Havana for state visit to Cuba

The invitation has been extended by Miguel Diaz Canel Bermudez, First Secretary of Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee and President of Cuba.

To Lam and his entourage were welcomed at the airport by a number of senior Cuban officials, including Roberto Morales Ojeda, Permanent member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee; Alvaro Lopez Miera, Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces; and Lazaro Alberto Alvarez Casas, Minister of the Interior.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Cuba Nguyen Hoang Long and embassy staff were also present at the airport.

This is To Lam’s first visit to the Caribbean island state in his capacity as General Secretary and President, and Cuba is one of the first countries he has visited in this role.

The visit demonstrates the enduring traditional solidarity and special friendship between Vietnam and Cuba, which is considered a valuable asset nurtured by the parties, states, and peoples of both sides. It also reflects Vietnam’s high regard for Cuba and its position in Vietnam’s foreign policy.

Le Hoai Trung, Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and Head of the Party’s Commission for External Relations, said that through the visit, Vietnam aims to continue inheriting and promoting the precious legacy of relations between the two countries, built on the solid foundation laid by President Ho Chi Minh and Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro.

During the visit, To Lam is expected to hold talks and meetings with key Cuban leaders, lay flowers at the statues of President Ho Chi Minh and Cuban national hero Jose Marti, visit several economic facilities, and meet with friends and the youth of both countries.

Vietnam and Cuba established diplomatic ties in December 1960, and they will celebrate 65 years of their diplomacy next year.