Luanda, Angola.— Esteban Lazo Hernández, member of the Political Bureau of the Party's Central Committee and president of the National Assembly of People's Power and the Council of State, arrived in the Republic of Angola on November 9th to participate in the main event commemorating the 50th anniversary of the national independence of the sister African country, as well as in activities marking five decades of diplomatic relations between Cuba and Angola.
Upon his arrival at Quatro de Fevereiro International Airport in Luanda, the head of the Cuban Parliament was received by Ambassador Osvaldo dos Santos Varela, Secretary of State for Administration, Finance, and Heritage; Ambassador Felisberto dos Prazeres Martins, Director of the Americas Directorate of the Angolan Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Carlos Cruz de Lemos Sardinha, Angolan Ambassador to Cuba; and Oscar León González, our country's ambassador to the African nation.
The Cuban delegation also includes Heroes of the Republic of Cuba, Army Corps General Joaquín Quintas Solá, Deputy Minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, and Major General Ramón Pardo Guerra; as well as Luis Alberto Amorós, Director of Sub-Saharan Africa at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Alberto Núñez Betancourt, President of the International Relations Commission of the National Assembly of People's Power; among other officials.
Their presence at the national commemorations of half a century of Angolan independence, attended by high-level representatives from around 20 countries, is a significant recognition of the historic and indestructible brotherhood between the two peoples, forged in the common struggle against colonialism and apartheid, under the guidance of Agostinho Neto and Fidel Castro Ruz.
The Cuban internationalist epic, especially during the heroic Operation Carlota, was an enduring page of altruism and solidarity, whose contribution was decisive in preserving and consolidating Angola's independence and achieving that of Namibia, as well as a significant contribution to the demise of the apartheid regime.
INTENSE AGENDA FOR THE HEAD OF THE CUBAN PARLIAMENT IN THE BROTHERLY AFRICAN COUNTRY
On the first day of his official visit to Angola, the President of the National Assembly of People's Power and the Council of State was received at the headquarters of the Presidency of the sister African nation by João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço, President of the Republic, to whom he delivered letters from Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, leader of the Cuban Revolution, and Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party and President of the Republic.
In these messages, they conveyed warm congratulations to the Angolan people and their main authorities on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of their national independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Cuba and Angola, and they reaffirmed their willingness to continue strengthening bilateral ties.
Esteban Lazo thanked the Angolan Head of State for the decoration conferred on November 6 on the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, and Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, with the medal for the 50th Anniversary of National Independence in its highest class, "Honor," and for his recognition, during his speech at that ceremony, of the contribution of the Cuban people to the independence struggle of this nation and to the end of apartheid.
"We are grateful for the help of our brotherly Cuban people, from the implementation of the very bold Operation Carlota, which paved the way for the arrival and participation of Cuban soldiers in the main military operations in Angola against foreign invaders. We are grateful for the mass training of our young people in Cuba in different specialties, as well as for the cooperation in education and health while our cadres were being trained," said João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço during the awards ceremony.
In addition, the head of the Cuban Parliament highlighted Angola's unwavering support and, in particular, President Lourenço's intervention in the High-Level Segment of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, calling for the lifting of the economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States government against our country, and for the exclusion of Cuba from the spurious list of states allegedly sponsoring terrorism.
Subsequently, Lazo Hernández held a fraternal meeting with the President of the Assembly of the Republic of Mozambique, Margarida Talapa. Both parties highlighted their satisfaction with the excellent state of bilateral relations, forged on the basis of solidarity and cooperation, faithful to the legacy and friendship between leaders Samora Machel and Fidel Castro Ruz.
In 2025, we will celebrate 50 years of diplomatic relations between our two countries, which is an incentive to continue developing the bonds of friendship, brotherhood, and cooperation between our peoples, parliaments, and governments, they emphasized in their cordial exchange. Margarida Talapa expressed her special gratitude for the island's historic solidarity with her people, as an example of true internationalist spirit.
Later, he held a friendly meeting with Azouz Nasri, president of the Council of the Nation of the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, in which they recognized the broad prospects and potential for continuing to strengthen bilateral ties for the benefit of both peoples.
In both meetings, Esteban Lazo discussed the current situation in the country, characterized by the recovery process in the wake of the damage caused by Hurricane Melissa and the confrontation with the consequences of the criminal economic, commercial, and financial blockade imposed by the United States government, among other aspects of the national context.
During the day, the President of the Cuban legislature held a fruitful meeting with our country's collaborators in the African nation, whom he described as worthy continuers of Angola's epic struggle, heirs of internationalism as a vibrant and daily practice, supporting Angolan reconstruction in essential areas such as health and education, for the benefit of the people. "Your efforts are our greatest pride and confirmation that, together, Cuba and Angola remain invincible," said Lazo Hernández.
Finally, together with the other members of the Cuban delegation, he exchanged views with members of organizations in solidarity with our country and with Cubans residing in this African nation. "We highly value the solidarity actions that you systematically carry out in defense of the Cuban Revolution, which has contributed to strengthening the friendship between our countries," said Alberto Núñez Betancourt, head of the parliamentary commission on International Relations.
During his stay in Angola, Esteban Lazo will hold official talks with the country's highest authorities, exchange views with other heads of international delegations present in Luanda, and participate in the national ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two nations, as well as in other activities.
