The president Miguel Diaz-Canel He confirmed this Friday that he was invited to the Brazil-Caribbean Summit by his counterpart from the South American country, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
“We were invited by Lula to the important Brazil-Caribbean Summit,” the president wrote on social networks after receiving the Brazilian Foreign Minister, Mauro Vieira, who is visiting Cuba until this Saturday, the last stop on a tour of eight countries with the objective to strengthen ties of cooperation.
Díaz-Canel said that during his meeting with Vieira he conveyed “affectionate greetings to President Lula” and they also addressed “possibilities of strengthening bilateral relations and advancing cooperation projects.”
I met with Mauro Vieira, chancellor of #Brazilwith whom I conveyed affectionate greetings to the President @LulaOficial. We address possibilities to strengthen bilateral relations and advance cooperation projects.
We were invited by Lula to the important Brazil-Caribbean Summit. pic.twitter.com/UNcfupP4zb
— Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez (@DiazCanelB) January 24, 2025
The Brazilian Foreign Ministry said for its part that Vieira’s visit seeks new formulas to “expand and diversify” bilateral trade and explore possibilities of cooperation after hurricanes Oscar and Rafael passed through the island at the end of last year.
In addition, he indicated that the foreign minister’s tour serves to prepare the ground for the Brazil-Caribbean summit that will be held on June 13 in Brasilia, just after the meeting of the governors of the Caribbean Development Bank, which will take place between on the 9th and 12th of that month.
Vieira also held a meeting with the Cuban Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodríguez, who he remarked the importance that ties with the Government of President Lula have for Cuba and considered that there is a “favorable and potential” development to explore.
He also stressed the enormous importance of Brazil’s presidency in the BRICS group, and described bilateral relations as “historic, cultural and deep.”
Rodríguez also recalled the “solidarity and permanent support” of Brazil, its opposition to the United States embargo on the island, and considered “a gesture of friendship” Vieira’s visit at a difficult time for Cuba, which has been mired for more than four years. in a serious economic and energy crisis.
Cuba and Brazil maintain close bilateral ties, materialized in cooperation in areas such as agriculture and health.
In March 2024, Cuba and Brazil signed a dozen agreements for the exchange of experiences in the management of food production, the local procurement of agroecological seeds and the improvement of commercial management of the state business group Acopio.
Cuba was the last point of the Brazilian Foreign Minister’s journey that began last Tuesday in Trinidad and Tobago, and was later continued in Grenada, Saint Lucia, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, Jamaica, and the Bahamas, all member countries of the Caribbean Community ( Caricom).
