BILATERALES

SYRIA, April 21, 2017 .- The Embassy of the Republic of Cuba in Damascus offered a reception on Thursday on the occasion of the 56th anniversary of the Victory in Playa Girón and 71nd of the Independence of Syria. The event was attended by the President of the Syrian Parliament, Hadiya Abbas; The Political and Media Adviser to the Syrian Presidency, Dr. Bouzeina Shabaan; The Minister of the Presidency, Mansour Azzam; The Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade, Samer Khalil; and the Minister of Health, Nizar Yazeyi.

The Hon. Maxine McClean, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, opened the celebration activities of both dates with Cuban Ambassador, Francisco Fernandez, which consisted of a panel discussion that addressed the historical and current context from many angles, followed by a cocktail party attended by Barbadian government officials, representatives of the business sector and civil society organizations, community of Cuban residents, members of the diplomatic corps and UN agencies and CARICOM resident in Barbados.

The Honorable Stephen Lashley, Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth of Barbados, today begins an official visit to Cuba, in which the main aspects of bilateral cooperation portfolios will be reviewed.

The Secretary General of the ruling Democratic Labour Party (DLP), Mr. George Pilgrim, was received by the Cuban ambassador, Francisco Fernandez, in a fraternal encounter at his headquarters, in which the barbadian official welcomed the diplomat while served to review bilateral relations, recognizing the need for a systematic exchange between both parties. Mr. Pilgrim thanked the postcard sent by Jose Ramon Balaguer Cabrera, Head of International Relations of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), addressed to the Right Honourable Freundel J.