General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong leaves for a state visit to the Republic of Cuba
On the morning of March 28 (local time), after successfully concluding his official visit to the French Republic, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and the Vietnamese high-ranking delegation left Paris for a state visit to the Republic of Cuba at the invitation of First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, President of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers Raul Castro.
 |
| General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. |
The delegation included comrades: Tong Thi Phong, Politburo member, Permanent Vice President of the National Assembly; Pham Binh Minh, Politburo member, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Nguyen Van Nen, Secretary of the Party Central Committee, Chief of the Central Office; Hoang Binh Quan, Party Central Committee member, Head of the Party Central Committee's External Relations Commission; Tran Tuan Anh, Party Central Committee member, Minister of Industry and Trade; Tran Hong Ha, Party Central Committee member, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment; Chu Ngoc Anh, Party Central Committee member, Minister of Science and Technology; Le Minh Tri, Party Central Committee member, Chief Prosecutor of the Supreme People's Procuracy; Nguyen Chi Vinh, Party Central Committee member, Senior Lieutenant General, Deputy Minister of National Defense; Le Quy Vuong, Party Central Committee member, Senior Lieutenant General, Permanent Deputy Minister of Public Security; Le Quoc Phong, alternate member of the Party Central Committee, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union; Ho Mau Ngoat, Assistant to the General Secretary and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to Cuba Nguyen Trung Thanh.
Attending the farewell ceremony for the General Secretary at Orly Airport (France) were representatives of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the French Ambassador in Hanoi, the Vietnamese Ambassador to France and a large number of embassy staff.
*Before boarding the plane to begin his high-level visit to Cuba, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong witnessed and participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony to receive the Airbus A350 wide-body aircraft from Vietnam Airlines Corporation.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Duong Tri Thanh, General Director of Vietnam Airlines, said this is the 11th aircraft in the fleet of 14 A350 aircraft delivered during the period 2015-2019, bringing the total number of Airbus aircraft of Vietnam Airlines to 150 by the end of 2019.
This transfer is of special significance as it takes place on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and France and the 5th anniversary of the signing of the Strategic Partnership Agreement. The presence of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the ribbon-cutting ceremony to receive the aircraft showed the attention of the Party and State to the development of Vietnam's aviation industry. This is also a recognition and appreciation of Vietnam Airlines' efforts in improving the capacity of its fleet and acting as an "economic bridge" between the two countries. Mr. Duong Tri Thanh affirmed that in the airline's long-term development strategy, Airbus has always been an important partner to help Vietnam Airlines succeed in modernizing its fleet and achieving 4-star service quality, aiming for 5-star in the future.
Previously, on the evening of March 27, in Paris, Vietnam Airlines held a ceremony to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Vietnam-France direct flight route. This event was part of the program to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Vietnam-France relations.