Miguel Díaz-Canel, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) and President of the Republic, received today in Moscow, Russia, the Medal in memory of the 80th Anniversary of the Great Victory, awarded by the Communist Party of that Eurasian nation.

Guennadi Ziuganov, president of the Russian organisation, presented the distinction during a meeting between the two political leaders, as part of the official visit of the Cuban head of state celebrating the 80th anniversary of the victory over fascism.

According to the Cuban Presidency, the meeting also saw the signing of a road map with actions to put into practice the agreements reached last year to bring the two parties closer together.

In the dialogue, the First Secretary of the CPC Central Committee described the relationship between the two political organisations as excellent, and expressed his gratitude for the support for the progress of the consensus reached with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He also conveyed to Ziuganov an embrace from Army General Raúl Castro Ruz and Prime Minister Manuel Marrero.

Díaz-Canel referred to the importance of the victory of the Great Patriotic War and the current attempts to rewrite it, and affirmed that the Cuban people do know the history of heroism of the Soviet and Russian people.

For his part, Ziuganov referred to the Cuban President as a dear friend, and thanked him for his support for the further strengthening of ties between the two nations and political organisations, according to the Presidency.

Díaz-Canel arrived in Moscow on Tuesday, after two days of work in St. Petersburg in which he held official talks with the Governor, Alexander Beglov, and visited scientific and technological centres.

The Cuban President has been on an official visit to Russia since Sunday, at the head of a Cuban delegation that also includes Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, Emilio Lozada García, a member of the PCC Central Committee and head of its International Relations Department, and the Minister of Foreign Trade and Investment, Oscar Pérez-Oliva Fraga.

In Moscow, Díaz-Canel will attend, at the invitation of President Putin, the parade marking the 80th Anniversary of the Victory of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics over Nazi Germany (9 May 1945).

The Cuban leader’s official visit to Russia also coincides with the 65th anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, which will be celebrated on 8 May.