Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel will for the first time personally attend an expanded meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council on 8 May, Russian presidential adviser Yuri Ushakov said today.
«Regarding Cuba, I mentioned that its president will participate as an observer in a meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council. By the way, it will be the first time he will attend the Council in person. Before that, he always joined via video conference or sent a video message,» Ushakov told reporters.
Also, the adviser recalled that Cuba has been an observer in the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) since 2020. «I would especially like to note that Cuba is the only EEU partner outside the region with a similar status,» he added.
Ushakov added that Russian President Vladimir Putin will discuss with his Cuban counterpart the two countries’ ties in all spheres, including politics, diplomacy and economic cooperation. It will be an important conversation, first in a reduced format, and then in an expanded one, he said.
The EEU, an economic alliance that unites Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Russia, encompasses a total population of some 184 million people and has a gross domestic product (GDP) of 1.9 trillion dollars.
The Supreme Eurasian Economic Council brings together the heads of state and government of the EEU.
The Cuban president will also attend the Victory Parade in Moscow on 9 May, along with the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Laos and Guinea-Bissau, Ushakov said.
In November 2022, Díaz-Canel made a four-day visit to Moscow, during which he held high-level meetings, including with Putin, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko and Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin.
Previously, the Cuban leader announced on his account on the social network X that he would begin a working visit to Russia to address the priorities of the bilateral agenda, following the president’s re-election.
He also announced that he would participate in the Supreme Council of the Eurasian Economic Union. All this in the context of the 64th anniversary of the restoration of diplomatic relations and the 79th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War.
