The Chargé d'Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the Republic of Cuba in India, Abel Aballe Despaigne, is on a working visit to the southern state of Kerala, on the occasion of the 65th anniversary of Che's visit to India.
During his first day, the Cuban diplomat was received by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of that state, A. N. Shamseer, who recognized Cuba's social achievements and ratified the support of the people of Kerala in the struggle against the criminal economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the government of the United States on Cuba, and in particular the inclusion of our country in the spurious List of alleged state sponsors of terrorism.
The two discussed the progress in cooperation relations between the state of Kerala and Cuba, following the visit of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to Cuba in June 2023, and the potential for continuing to strengthen them in different areas. They also exchanged on legislative developments in Kerala and Cuba, as well as the current situation in both territories.
As part of the agenda, the Cuban diplomat also exchanged with the vice chairman of the Planning Board of Kerala, V.K. Ramachandran, with whom he reviewed the results of the visit of the head of the Government of Kerala to Cuba in 2023 and the existing potentialities for the development of cooperation relations between Kerala and Cuba in the field of sports, information technologies, biotechnology and agriculture.
Likewise, he held a meeting with the Minister of Sports of the Government of Kerala, V. Abdurahiman, where they reviewed the current status of cooperation agreements between the state of Kerala and Cuba in the field of sports, and the potential to increase the exchange of experiences in this sector. They also recalled the first edition of the "Ernesto Che Guevara" Chess tournament held in 2023 and discussed the variants to make this a regular space for the exchange of the chess communities of Kerala and Cuba.
Finally, the Charge d'Affaires a.i. visited the Kerala Arts and Crafts Village, where he discussed with the Business Development Manager, Satheesh Kumar N, the different experiences in Cuba and Kerala to preserve the artistic and handicraft traditions, as well as the possibilities for greater cultural exchange between the two nations.
