Cuban leader Fidel Castro said in Tehran on Tuesday that Cuba and all developing countries consider Iran a flag-bearer of independence and freedom.
Castro’s remarks came after a meeting with Iran’s President Mohammad Khatami, reported the Tehran Times newspaper.
The Cuban leader is in Tehran for talks with Iranian officials on ways to further expand bilateral ties.
President Khatami said that the two countries were determined to develop bilateral relations.
He said that “Iran and Cuba have excellent relations," adding that preparations should be made to utilize the capacity of the two countries for economic cooperation.
He called for removal of obstacles to implementing the accords already reached between the two countries, the paper said.
President Khatami praised the efforts being made by the Cuban people and government to retain their independence and make progress.
The Cuban leader briefed the Iranian president on the revolutionary movement in Cuba and the campaign of the Cuban government to maintain economic, educational and cultural independence, and to carry out development plans in Cuba.
Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and Minister of Agriculture Jihad Mahmoud Hojjati were present at the meeting, said the paper.
The Iranian ministers and the Cuban delegation exchanged views on international issues including the trade embargo, and plans in the fields of social security and national welfare.
Kharrazi presented a report on close relations between Tehran and Havana at the bilateral and regional level, and called for speeding up the implementation of the agreements signed by the Iranian-Cuban Joint Economic Commission.
He called for joint investment in the field of shipping, customs, fisheries, banking and textiles, the paper added.
The two sides decided to follow up on the economic issues later with further negotiations.
Later in the day, Castro visited the tomb of Imam Khomeini, founder of the Islamic revolution in Iran.
Heading a large delegation of high-ranking officials and businessmen, Castro is visiting Iran in response to President Khatami's trip to Havana in September.
The Cuban leader, who arrived from Algiers on a tour that will also take him to Malaysia and Qatar, is also due to meet with Iran’s spiritual leader Ayatollah Khamenei, Parliament Speaker Mahdi Karrubi, and other Iranian officials during his three-day stay in Tehran – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
