Cuban Vice President Salvador Valdés Mesa, on Thursday, during his first day of activities in Kazakhstan, signed the Joint Action Plan between Cuba and the Eurasian Economic Union for the period 2026-2030 with the President of the Eurasian Economic Council, Bakytzhan Sagintayev.
This is a multi-sectoral cooperation roadmap designed to strengthen economic, trade, and scientific ties between our country and the Eurasian bloc comprised of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia.
The Vice President and the President of the Union Council discussed the prospects for cooperation between Cuba and the group of five Eurasian nations. The President expressed his gratitude for Cuba's presence, as an Observer State, at the summit meeting, noting that it comes at a very complex time for the Caribbean nation.
Bakytzhan Sagintayev stated that he is well aware of the high regard and esteem that Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez holds for the Eurasian Economic Union, and that he has participated in person in two of these meetings. He also referred to his meeting last March with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga, during the Eurasian Economic Union's intergovernmental meeting. Exchanges in recent years, he commented, have made it possible to increase trade not only between Cuba and Russia, but also with other nations of the Union, such as Armenia.
During the relaxed conversation, the Cuban vice president thanked the president of the Eurasian Economic Council for the welcome and spoke about the complex situation the country is facing due to the tightening of the United States blockade and threats of military aggression; hence, he emphasized, the importance of a Cuban delegation participating in this important summit.
In the dialogue, Valdés Mesa pointed out the sectors in which Cuba has the greatest potential and with which it can cooperate going forward with the five countries of the Eurasian Union. Among these, he highlighted opportunities in the Mariel Special Development Zone, biotechnology, tourism, the sugar industry, and agriculture.
The Cuban vice president took the opportunity to extend an invitation to business leaders from the nations of the regional bloc to participate in the Havana International Fair next November, where important business deals could be finalized.
Following the talks, Valdés Mesa and Bakytzhan Sagintayev toured the grounds of the Astana Congress Center, a modern building hosting the Eurasian Economic Forum this Thursday, a key summit for dialogue and international trade cooperation. A delegation of Cuban businesspeople from the trade, logistics, and biotechnology sectors is also present.
