AKEL delegation visit to Cuba

The General Secretary of the C.C. of AKEL concludes

11 May 2024, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia

The visit of an AKEL delegation headed by the General Secretary of the Central Committee of AKEL, Stefanos Stefanou, to Cuba, which took place on the invitation of the Communist Party of Cuba, has been concluded.  The General Secretary of AKEL was accompanied by Vera Polycarpou, Head of International Relations and European Policy of AKEL.

During the official visit, a series of meetings took place in which the relationship of mutual solidarity and the desire to further deepen cooperation and exchanges between the two Parties in a way beneficial to the struggles of the peoples of Cyprus and Cuba were confirmed. Within this framework, in the meeting between Stefanos Stefanou and the member of the Political Bureau and Secretary of Organization of the Communist Party of Cuba, Roberto Tomás Morales Ojeda, the situation in the two countries and the challenges that each Party faces in the difficult regional and international conditions were discussed.

On this basis, a Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation was signed by Stefanou and Morales, which among other things includes exchanges of views, analyses and research on political, economic and social issues based on the experiences in the two countries, as well as on regional or international issues of common interest. The Memorandum also includes a provision for exchanges and cooperation between mass trade union, youth and women’s organisations.

In the meeting with the Head of the International Relations Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, Emilio Losada, there was a great convergence in the discussion that took place surrounding the international situation characterized by increasing militarization, the aggression on the part of the US and its allies, the violation of international law and the imposition of double-standards policies. In this complex conjuncture at an international and regional level, the need to strengthen the joint action of communist, left and progressive parties and to reinforce unity in their actions even through the diversity of their ideological backgrounds was stressed.

The General Secretary of AKEL also had a meeting with Ana María Mari Machado, Vice-President of the National Assembly of People’s Power and of the Council of State of the Republic of Cuba, which was also attended by Dr. Marta Mesa Valencia, President of the Committee on Education, Science and Culture and President of the Friendship Group of the Cuban Parliament with the House of Representatives of Cyprus. The meeting identified the possibility of activating the relations between the two Parliaments and strengthening their cooperation in international fora, such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union.

In the meeting with the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cuba, Anayansi Rodríguez Camejo, Stefanos Stefanou briefed on the current impasse on the Cyprus problem and the need to continue the negotiations from the point where they were suspended in 2017 at Crans Montana. The General Secretary of AKEL thanked Deputy Minister Camejo for Cuba’s firm and principled stance on the solution of the Cyprus problem and its active role in the General Assembly of the United Nations.

During the meeting with the Vice President of the Cuban Chamber of Commerce, Tania Aguirre, the possibilities for the promotion and implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the Chambers of Commerce of Cyprus and Cuba, aiming at the development of commercial exchanges between the two countries, were explored.

The programme of the AKEL delegation’s visit included visits and meetings with the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), the Cuban Medical Services, the Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology and the “Granma” newspaper.  The AKEL delegation also visited the “Fidel Castro Ruz Centre”, which highlights the life and work of the leader of the Cuban Revolution, and had a meeting with the Centre’s Director Rene Gonzalez Barrio.

Finally, the delegation of AKEL had the opportunity to visit sites linked to the history of the Cuban Revolution. A visit was made to Playa Girón, where the US had organised a mercenary invasion in 1962 with the aim of overthrowing Fidel Castro’s government, an invasion which was successfully countered. The AKEL delegation also visited the Che Guevara monument in Santa Clara, where the remains of the hero and his comrades who were killed in Bolivia are buried.

The AKEL delegation’s visit to Cuba took place at a time of increasing repercussions on the daily life of the Cuban people due to the illegal economic, commercial and financial blockade unilaterally imposed by the US against Cuba for over 60 years.  During the visit to Cuba, the General Secretary of the Central Committee of AKEL reiterated AKEL’s condemnation of the illegal and criminal blockade which the international community has condemned in dozens of resolutions adopted by the United Nations General Assembly.

The AKEL delegation also denounced the inclusion of Cuba on the list of states that support terrorism, a list unilaterally drawn up and imposed by the USA and which is aimed at continuing the imposition of the illegal isolation of Cuba from global economic, financial and commercial activity.

11.05.2024