Vice President Ansari meets Fidel to discuss bilateral ties

Vice President Hamid Ansari had an 35 minute-long meeting with Cuban revolutionary hero Fidel Castro here and reflected on the "warmth" in relationship between the India and Cuba, two of the founding members of the Non Aligned Movement (NAM).
Yesterday's meeting was the first time in several months that the 87-year-old former President of Cuba met a foreign dignitary. The last meeting Castro had with any visiting dignitary was perhaps with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in July. Fidel has been in poor health and demitted office in July 2006.
While Ansari was visibly pleased with the talks he had with Castro, details were not immediately available. India's Ambassador to Cuba C Rajshekhar was also present at the interaction.

After concluding a "landmark" tour of Peru during which four agreements were signed, Ansari arrived in Cuba yesterday.
Despite the two countries working closely in the NAM, It is the first ever bilateral visit by any Indian VVIP to the Communist country as earlier trips by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and others were in connection with multi-lateral events and meetings.
Castro has been a great friend of India and Indian leaders like Indira Gandhi whom he had handed over the leadership of the NAM movement at the NAM summit in Delhi in 1983.
Coming at a time when China is trying to make inroads into Cuba, Ansari's visit is being seen as an attempt to strengthen India's presence in Southern America.

India had written off Cuba's debt of USD 62 million in 2008. Subsequently, a new credit line of USD 120 million was opened, of which USD 12.7 million has been spent on a milk company, a chemical industry and an animal vaccine firm.