This island???s Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister, Senator Maxine McClean, expects Barbados??? long-standing relationship with Cuba to continue under the leadership of its newly-appointed Ambassador, Francisco Fern??ndez Pe??a.
She emphasised this recently as the Ambassador and his wife paid a courtesy call on her at the Ministry???s Culloden Road headquarters.
???We???ve had a very good relationship with Cuba for many years and with your several ambassadors. We hope you will continue where Ambassador P??rez P??rez left off. We???ve had excellent relations since the 1970s, when we established diplomatic ties,??? Senator McClean said.
She commended the work of his predecessor, Lisette P??rez P??rez, and wished Ambassador Pe??a a successful tour of duty.??The Foreign Trade Minister also acknowledged the support given to Barbados over the years, in the areas of sport and medicine, particularly the eye-care programme, Operaci??n Milagro.
She told Ambassador Pe??a that ways to further collaborate would be discussed in the future, and there would be ???opportunities to share some areas in which we have had some success???. Ambassador Pe??a in turn thanked the Minister for her sentiments, and said Cuba looked forward to continuing its relationship and hoped this would lead to new avenues of cooperation.
The new Ambassador was accredited as Cuba???s diplomatic representative on November 13, this year. Barbados established relations with Cuba in December 1972.
joy-ann.gill@barbados.gov.bb