Full text of the Joint Statement between Vietnam and Cuba

Comrade Raul Castro Ruz, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of the Republic of Cuba, welcomes General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Photo: Tri Dung/TTXVN.

According to the VNA special correspondent, during the State visit of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and the high-level Vietnamese delegation to the Republic of Cuba from March 28-30 at the invitation of the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers Raul Castro Ruz, the two sides issued a Joint Statement.

Vietnam News Agency (VNA) is pleased to present the full text of the Vietnam-Cuba joint statement.

1. At the invitation of General Raul Castro Ruz, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of the Republic of Cuba, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong led a high-level delegation of the Vietnamese Party and State on a state visit to the Republic of Cuba from March 28 to 30, 2018.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong held talks with First Secretary, President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers, General Raul Castro Ruz; and had meetings and exchanges with Second Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, Jose Ramon Machado Ventura; Politburo member and President of the National Assembly Esteban Lazo Hernandez; and Politburo member and First Vice President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers Miguel Diaz Canel Bermudez. All activities took place in an atmosphere of brotherhood and mutual trust.

Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong laid wreaths at the Monument to Cuban National Hero Jose Marti and at the Monument to President Ho Chi Minh; visited the city of Santiago de Cuba; visited the tomb of Jose Marti and paid respects at the tomb of the Commander-in-Chief of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz; visited several historical sites in the Heroic City of Santiago de Cuba; visited Vo Thi Thang Primary School; and met and spoke with representatives of the younger generation of both countries.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong received an Honorary Doctorate in Political Science from the University of Havana, in recognition of his dedication to science and his worthy contributions to the building of socialism in Vietnam; and his interest in sharing with Cuba theoretical and practical experiences regarding Vietnam's development model.

In recognition of Comrade Raul Castro Ruz's invaluable contributions to consolidating and strengthening relations between the two Parties and countries, and to the cause of building socialism, the Party and State of Vietnam have decided to award him the Gold Star Order, the highest honor of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. On behalf of the Cuban people, General Raul Castro expressed his profound gratitude for this decision by the Party, State, and people of Vietnam.

2. The two leaders reaffirmed the special friendship and close solidarity between Vietnam and Cuba; a symbol of the times and an invaluable asset of the two Parties and peoples.

Both sides affirmed their determination to continue inheriting and developing the enduring legacy of President Ho Chi Minh and Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro, pioneers in preserving and promoting the fine traditional friendship that binds the Vietnamese and Cuban peoples.

Both sides agreed that expanding, strengthening, and deepening the solidarity, brotherhood, and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries would make a positive contribution to the cause of national construction and defense in each country, and to peace, stability, and development in each region and the world.

3. During the talks, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and First Secretary and President Raul Castro expressed satisfaction with the good bilateral relations between the two countries; affirmed their determination to bring the special relationship between the two countries to a new stage of development, based on political trust; emphasized the need to enhance the effectiveness of cooperation in economics, trade, investment, and other fields; informed each other about the situation of each Party and country; and discussed international issues of common concern.

4. The two leaders agreed that future generations of Vietnam and Cuba will be the loyal successors to the history of solidarity and friendship between the two nations; who have been, are, and will always be united in the cause of defending the irreversible stability of socialism and a more just, equitable, and sustainable world.

5. On behalf of the Party, State, and people of Vietnam, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong warmly congratulated the successful election of representatives to the People's Councils of provinces and cities and representatives to the National Assembly of the People's Government of the 9th term, which took place on March 11, 2018; and expressed firm belief that, under the guidance of the resolutions set forth by the 6th and 7th Congresses of the Communist Party of Cuba, Cuba will continue to successfully implement the process of updating its socialist economic and social model, opening a new stage of development in the construction of a sovereign, independent, socialist, democratic, prosperous, and sustainable nation.

Vietnam affirms its consistent stance in supporting the noble cause of the Cuban people and their struggle for the immediate and unconditional lifting of the unjust economic, trade, and financial embargo against Cuba. Vietnam reaffirms its support for efforts to normalize Cuba-US relations on the basis of equality, respect for the sovereignty, independence, and political institutions of each country. Vietnam highly appreciates Cuba's prestige and role in Latin America, the Caribbean, and on the international stage.

6. On behalf of the Party, State, and people of Cuba, First Secretary and President Raul Castro congratulated the Party, Government, and people of Vietnam on their outstanding and historically significant achievements in the Doi Moi (Renovation) process initiated and led by the Communist Party of Vietnam; he highly appreciated Vietnam's peaceful foreign policy, its commitment to protecting independence and sovereignty, its international integration, its international prestige, and its contributions to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in Southeast Asia, the Asia-Pacific region, and the world.

Cuba supports and firmly believes that Vietnam will continue to achieve even greater successes in the cause of building and defending the socialist Fatherland, successfully realizing the goal of "a prosperous people, a strong nation, democracy, fairness, and civilization," building Vietnam into a modern industrialized country, and successfully building socialism in Vietnam.

7. The two leaders agreed that, in the current context, with Vietnam accelerating its Doi Moi (Renovation) process and Cuba actively implementing its updated model of socialist economic and social development, both sides need to maintain regular meetings and contacts at all levels. They should maintain exchanges on theory and practice, share experiences in state leadership, socio-economic management, party building, and the relationship between the Party and youth organizations; and continue close cooperation on defense, security, and foreign affairs.

8. Both sides emphasized the importance of bilateral cooperation mechanisms such as: the Exchange and Cooperation Agreement between the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Communist Party of Cuba; the Theoretical Seminar between the two Parties; the Intergovernmental Committee on Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation; Political Consultations between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs; relations between the Ministry of National Defence of Vietnam and the Ministry of Revolutionary Forces of Cuba; and exchanges on the socio-economic models of the two countries. Both sides expressed their determination to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of these mechanisms.

9. General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Raul Castro emphasized the importance of further promoting and enhancing the effectiveness of economic cooperation; they highly appreciated the conclusion of negotiations on a new Trade Agreement within the framework of the visit, considering it a basis for further expanding relations in the economic and trade fields. Cuba supports increased Vietnamese investment in Cuba, through the signing of important investment projects, and will continue to create a favorable environment for this purpose.

Both sides will consider each country's potential to expand cooperation in priority sectors and fields such as energy, telecommunications, tourism, construction, health services, agro-industry and food industries, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, transportation, and other areas.

Both sides highly appreciated the importance of the cooperation documents signed during the visit in the fields of agriculture, construction, information and communication, human resources and social security, science and technology.

Comrade Raul Castro thanked the Party, State, and Government of Vietnam for forgiving Cuba's debt to Vietnam, stating that this is proof of the special relationship between the two countries.

10. The two leaders expressed satisfaction with the complete similarity in their countries' positions on many international issues; emphasizing that international disputes should be resolved by peaceful means, based on respect for international law, the United Nations Charter, respect for the principles of independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and self-determination of states, non-interference in internal affairs, and the non-use or threat of force.

Both sides agreed that the increasingly close bilateral relationship between Vietnam and Cuba will contribute to expanding cooperation between Vietnam and countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region; and between Cuba and countries in the Asia-Pacific region, for peace, stability, cooperation, development, and prosperity in both regions and the world. Both sides acknowledged the role of regional and inter-regional organizations such as the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC) in strengthening friendly relations and cooperation based on respect and peaceful coexistence, and respect for international law, in the spirit of the Declaration on Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, President of the Council of State and Council of Ministers of the Republic of Cuba, Raul Castro Ruz, review the honor guard of the Cuban Army. Photo: Tri Dung/TTXVN.

11. Both sides reaffirmed the validity of the fundamental principles of the Non-Aligned Movement; emphasized that the objectives and operating principles of the Non-Aligned Movement must be thoroughly respected; appreciated the Movement's contributions to the protection of the principles of international law; considered that the Non-Aligned Movement needs to be further strengthened to effectively confront the enormous challenges of the world today; affirmed their commitment to promoting international peace, security, disarmament, especially nuclear disarmament; and expressed satisfaction that Vietnam and Cuba have signed and ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

Both sides also agreed to effectively implement the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda; and to continue making positive contributions to efforts to address climate change by promoting respect for and application of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement, based on the principle of shared responsibility but respect for differences.

12. The two leaders agreed to continue supporting each other in international organizations and multilateral forums of which both countries are members, especially at the United Nations, including supporting each other's candidates and aligning common positions through regular exchanges between the two governments.

13. Both sides agreed to continue strengthening coordination, cooperation, and mutual support within the framework of the International Meeting of Communist and Workers' Parties, the Sao Paulo Forum, and other political and social forums.

14. Both sides highly appreciated the successful results of the State visit to the Republic of Cuba by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong; considering it a particularly significant event, in the context of the 45th anniversary of the first visit to Vietnam by Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, the only head of state to visit the area recently liberated by Vietnamese soldiers at the 17th parallel, Quang Tri province.

15. General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong sincerely thanked First Secretary and President Raul Castro Ruz, and expressed gratitude to the Party, State, and people of Cuba for the warm welcome, hospitality, and hospitality extended to him personally and the high-level Vietnamese delegation.

On behalf of the leaders of the Vietnamese Party and State, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong respectfully invited First Secretary and President Raul Castro to pay an official visit to Vietnam. Comrade Raul Castro sincerely thanked him and happily accepted the invitation. The visit will be arranged through diplomatic channels.

Havana, March 29, 2018.