QUẢNG TRỊ — The central province of Quảng Trị on Saturday inaugurated Fidel Park to mark 45 years since Cuban leader Fidel Castro’s visit to the liberated region in southern Việt Nam in 1973.

Attending the ceremony were First Vice President of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers of Cuba Salvador Valdés Mesa; Politburo member and permanent member of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Central Committee  (CPVCC)’s Secretariat Trần Quốc Vượng; Politburo member, member of the CPVCC’s Secretariat and head of the CPVCC’s Commission for Mass Mobilisation Trương Thị Mai, who is also President of the Việt Nam-Cuba Friendship Association; and Minister of Construction Phạm Hồng Hà, who is co-chair of the Việt Nam-Cuba Inter-Governmental Committee.

Speaking at the event, Trương Thị Mai said that the inauguration of the park on this occasion was of significance, demonstrating the love of the people in Quảng Trị in particular and Việt Nam in general for Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

The brotherhood between Việt Nam and Cuba would last forever, she stressed. After the ceremony, the Vietnamese and Cuban delegates planted trees in the park.

Fidel Park covers six hectares in Đông Hà City with an investment of over VNĐ137 billion (US$5.86 million).

Addressing a grand meeting in Quảng Trị on September 14 to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Fidel Castro’s visit, Trần Quốc Vượng stated that Fidel’s trip to the liberated zone brought the solidarity and valuable support of the Cuban people to Việt Nam. 

His presence in the zone amidst dangers and hardships was a great source of encouragement to southern residents and soldiers, as well as the Vietnamese people during the anti-US resistance war, he added.

Fidel made three visits to Việt Nam in September 1973, December 1995 and February 2003. 

He was the first foreign leader to visit the newly-liberated area in the south of Việt Nam during the anti-US resistance war.

He was also a national leader who took the initiative in international movements to support Việt Nam’s struggle for national independence and reunification, along with its process of national development and defence.

With all his great contributions, the Cuban leader was presented with the two noblest orders of the Vietnamese State: the Gold Star Order in 1982 and the Hồ Chí Minh Order in 1989. – VNS