The representative of the Public Chamber of Russia, Nikita Anisimov, referred to the Commander-in-Chief as a «symbol of an era and a true friend of Cuba.»

Cuba is one of the Latin American countries best known there, said Nikita Anisimov, representative of the Public Chamber of Russia. Photo: Dunia Álvarez Palacios

«I am convinced that the relationship between the Cuban and Russian peoples is very honest; Cuba is one of the Latin American countries best known there,» said Nikita Anisimov, representative of the Public Chamber of Russia.

His lecture, given at the pavilion of the guest of honour country at the 34th edition of the Havana International Book Fair, was entitled «Fidel Castro: symbol of an era and true friend of Russia; the Commander’s contribution to the development of friendly relations between the peoples of Russia and Cuba.»

Anisimov presented graphic testimonies of two special moments of that relationship: Fidel’s first visit to the USSR, and the visit to Cuba of cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man to travel into outer space.

«Fidel proved that man can achieve unimaginable goals,» he said; and highlighted the great depth of the leader’s thinking, which covered several spheres of life. «He had a superior vision of the world, of humanity’s possibilities,» he noted.

At the stand – which has the motto «Books from Russia. We Read Together» – Anisimov also recalled the only time he saw Fidel in person, and the astonishment caused by the love he felt for Russia and his extraordinary knowledge of the classics of Russian literature.

He also referred to the firm collaborations, «very powerful bridges,» between both nations; both those that currently exist, and those that decades ago fostered an intense student exchange and the flight into space of Cuban Arnaldo Tamayo, the first Latin American man to accomplish such a feat.

«The ties remain alive between our peoples,» he stated.