Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn (left) meets Cuban Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Marcelino Medina in Havana. — VNA/VNS Photo

HAVANA — Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn met with Cuban Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Marcelino Medina in Havana on Monday (local time).

Sơn, who was accompanying President Nguyễn Xuân Phúc on an official visit to Cuba, emphasised the important significance of the Vietnamese leader’s trip in the current context, saying that it manifested the special friendship, close solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Việt Nam and Cuba.

He highly appreciated the close coordination between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and the Embassies of Việt Nam and Cuba in preparing for President Phúc’s first visit to Cuba.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its Cuban counterpart would urge other ministries and sectors of the two nations to effectively implement high-level agreements reached by President Phúc and Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, Sơn said.

Medina stressed that President Phúc’s visit was the first official high-level activity in Cuba since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in the country. Leaders and the people of Cuba attached great importance to the visit, considering it vivid evidence of consistent solidarity and timely mutual support between the two nations, he added.

The two sides agreed to continue flexibly carrying out the political consultation mechanism at deputy foreign minister level amid complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.

They also consented to strengthen coordination, cooperation and mutual support at international organisations and multilateral forums of which both nations are members, especially the United Nations.

The officials held that amid current challenges, the two sides would actively promote cooperative ties in different fields to match with fine political relations between Việt Nam and Cuba for the common interests of both nations.

At the end of the meeting, Sơn and Medina witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the Diplomatic Academy of Việt Nam and the Raúl Roa García Higher Institute of International Relations of Cuba by Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Đặng Hoàng Giang and his Cuban counterpart Gerardo Penalver. — VNS