President grateful for Cuba’s solidarity with Lanka

President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Cuban President Raul Castro agreed on Saturday to further strengthen cooperation between their countries. The two leaders met for official talks at the Palace of the Revolution in Havana on Saturday where the Cuban President welcomed President Rajapaksa with a military guard of honour.

At the start of talks, President Rajapaksa expressed his appreciation for Cuba’s support to Sri Lanka in the international fora. The two leaders highlighted the excellent state of bilateral relations between the two countries spanning 53 years and expressed common willingness to further promote it.

They exchanged views on further expanding economic relations. The feasibility of adopting successful nano and bio- technology methods used in Cuba for the development of coconut cultivation in Sri Lanka was also discussed.

Expanding cooperation in the health sector was also discussed which included the possibility of Sri Lanka purchasing medicinal drugs from Cuba.

The leaders also discussed ways of implementing student exchange between universities in both countries and enhancing the number of scholarships offered to Sri Lankan students to study in Cuba in the field of medicine, engineering and technology.

The leaders also voiced interest in enhancing collaboration in the field of sports.

Ministers Prof G L Peiris, Wimal Weerawansa, Anura Priyadharsana Yapa and Mahinda Amaraweera, Deputy Minister Nirupama Rajapaksa and Secretary to the President Lalith Weeratunga accompanied the President.