The members of the House of Representatives of the US Congress who have been visiting Cuba since the weekend, all members of the Agriculture Committee, they were received this tuesday by the Vice President of Cuba Salvador Valdés Mesa.
According to a report from the agency Latin Press (PL), the Cuban official spoke with legislators Salud Carbajal, James Baird and Jahana Hayes, who were accompanied by Benjamin Ziff, charge d’affaires of the US embassy in Havana.
The bipartisan delegation has the objective of analyzing the current state of agricultural practices on the Island and the state of food supplies from the northern nation.
No details were disclosed of the topics covered, however. It was known that Valdés Mesa was accompanied by the interim Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gerardo Peñalver; the vice minister of that portfolio, Carlos Fernández de Cossío, and the Cuban business manager in Washington, Lianys Torres.
Since last Saturday, legislators have been carrying out a work agenda on the island, which included meetings with government authorities, deputies to the National Assembly of People’s Power (parliament), agricultural producers, and scientific and commercial entities, according to the source.
US bipartisan delegation evaluates opportunities for trade in food and agricultural products in Cuba
This is the first information from official Cuban media regarding the visit of this delegation.
It is not the first time that US officials have discussed with their counterparts in Cuba the possibilities of increasing exchanges in this sector. Both nations exchanged last April about formulas to promote cooperation, at a time of serious shortages and food shortages on the Island.