Senior Chinese Military Officer Meets Cuban GuestFu Quanyou, chief of general staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), met Tuesday with Arnaldo Tamayo Mendez, director of foreign affairs of the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba.Fu, who is also a member of the Central Military Commission, said that Cuba was the first country in the Latin American region to establish diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China. He said that China attaches importance to developing friendly cooperation with Cuba, adding that the bilateral ties have been developing smoothly since the two countries forged diplomatic relations 40 years ago. The two countries have also enhanced their mutually-benefitial cooperation in various areas, Fu noted. Chinese President Jiang Zemin's visit to Cuba and Cuban President Fidel Castro Ruz's China trip have pushed forward the bilateral relations, Fu said. He said that the Chinese people admire the Cuban people's spirit of independence, struggling against power politics, and striving forward. The military exchanges between the two sides have also been expanded, Fu said, stating that he hopes the military ties between the two countries continue to grow steadily. Tamayo said that the two countries have maintained frequent high-level visits in recent years and the two armies have also maintained close contacts, believing that the relationship will be further consolidated. Cuba hopes that China will become even stronger and play an even bigger role in maintaining the world peace, Tamayo said. |
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