At the 4 de Fevereiro International Airport, João Lourenço and the First Lady were seen of by the Vice-President of the Republic, Bornito de Sousa, the governor of Luanda, Luther Rescova, and members of the Executive.
In Cuba, on this first official visit, the Angolan leader will fulfil an intense agenda, which includes meetings with local authorities and businessmen, with the Angolan community residing in that archipelago and visits to various sites.
The trip to the Caribbean country, comes 23 days after João Lourenço sent a letter to his Cuban counterpart, Miguel Díaz-Canel, extolling the historic ties that unite the two states.
The letter was delivered by the Angolan Foreign Minister, Manuel Augusto, who met with his Cuban counterpart, Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, for three days in Cuba (to prepare for this historical visit).
In Havana, the head of the Angolan diplomacy also held a meeting with Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment Minister Rodrigo Malmierca Diaz and other government entities of that island country.
The occasion also served to visit the “House of Africa” Museum (in Colonial Havana) and to deposit a wreath at the tomb of José Marti National Hero in Revolution Square.
Meanwhile, the Angolan delegation, which also joined the Secretary of State for Finance and Treasury, Vera Daves, took advantage of dealing with the Cuban authorities of the arrears of debt with that Caribbean country.
Prior to that, in April, the Vice-President of the Council of the Minister of the Republic of Cuba, Ricardo Cabrisas Ruiz, was in Angola with the purpose of strengthening friendship ties and identifying new areas for cooperation.
Angola and Cuba have maintained historical political-diplomatic relations since the early days of the proclamation of the independence of the Angolan State, on November 11, 1975, in the military, defence and security, health, industry, education and higher education, and petroleum.
For this visit, the authorities of the two countries have established a program that will begin to be fulfilled Monday morning, July 1th, with a tribute to antónio agostinho neto at the African Heroes Park in Havana.
On the same day, the angolan head of state will pay tribute to the deceased Cuban fighters in Angola, placing a crown of flowers in the pantheon erected in the cemetery of colón, in the heart
Also Monday, joão lourenço will hold a masterful conference at the centuries-old university of Havana, on the same day he will head the angolan delegation in the talks with the Cuban authorities, which will culmination with the signing of a set of agreements in various areas
Another prominent activity to take place on the first day of the official mission of president joão lourenço in Cuba will be the visit to the center of genetic engineering and biotechnology, worldwide known for its advanced research in areas such as cancer cure
On Tuesday, July 2, the programme provides for a visit by president joão lourenço to the special port area of development of Mariel, on the outskirts of Havana, and a meeting with angolan grantees, mostly medical students.
