MINSK, 18 April (BelTA) - Belarus and Cuba, in spite of the difficulties, are building up political contacts and increasing the exchange of goods and services, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of Cuba Valery Baranovsky said in an interview to the news agency Prensa Latina on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, BelTA has learned.
The diplomat stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic affected trade between the two countries, but the situation has improved in 2021. Thus, last year's trade was more than three times higher than the one in 2020. Belarus supplied about 300 tractors to the Cuban market. The trade in services increased.
Valery Baranovsky also spoke about the efforts to resolve logistical difficulties in the mutual transportation of goods, and the work to increase the presence of Belarusian and Cuban goods on the markets of both countries.
The ambassador praised the level of bilateral political dialogue established between the countries at the highest level and the mutual support of the friendly states in international forums. “Belarus and Cuba will be able to successfully withstand any external threats for the prosperity of the two brotherly nations. I am confident that nothing will lead us astray,” said Valery Baranovsky.
Although diplomatic relations between Belarus and Cuba officially turned 30 years old, the bilateral relations between the two countries had been established before 1992 and developed within the framework of the former Soviet Union. Valery Baranovsky recalled that in 1962 the first Cubans came to Belarus to study at the Belarusian State University. The ambassador also said that the visit of Cuban delegation to Belarus, headed by then leader Fidel Castro in 1972, was a great success. In 1976, Army General Raul Castro visited Belarus, and two years later the island was visited by First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party Pyotr Masherov, who was awarded the Cuban jubilee medal.
Later, the Spanish language courses became popular in the BSSR and a Cuban trade mission was opened in Minsk. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Belarus set a course for the development of a multi-pronged foreign policy, which included dialogue with Cuba. “Largely thanks to Cuba, Belarus became the only European country admitted to the Non-Aligned Movement and also received the status of an observer country in the Association of Caribbean States and the Latin American Parliament,” said Valery Baranovsky.
On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Belarusian-Cuban diplomatic relations, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko sent a message of greetings to his Cuban counterpart Miguel Diaz-Canel. The Belarusian head of state noted the importance of strengthening bilateral ties, including for countering global threats.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Cuba to Minsk Juan Valdes Figueroa conveyed Miguel Diaz-Canel's message of greetings to the president of Belarus on the occasion of the anniversary of the Belarusian-Cuban diplomatic relations.
