Speaking with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper after the meeting, Ambassador LópezDíaz said he had paid the visit to bid courtesy farewell to the state president prior to finishing his tenure in Hanoi.

The Cuban ambassador expressed his thanks for President Quang’s continued support in efforts to strengthen bilateral ties.

On a more personal note, the ambassador said he had been on good terms with the state president since Quang’s previous office as Vietnam’s Minister of Public Security.

President Quang’s priority had always been to upgrade relations with Cuba, Ambasador López Díaz stressed, noting that the Vietnamese head of state was the last world leader to meet with late Cuban leader Fidel Castro before his passing.

State President Tran Dai Quang (L) shakes hands with Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Herminio López Díaz at the Office of the State President in Hanoi, August 28, 2017. Photo: Vietnam News Agency

At Monday’s meeting, President Quang congratulated the Cuban ambassador on having outstandingly executed his four-year mission in Vietnam.

Over the course of the ambassador’s tenure, Quang said, he had become a trusted bridge between state and Party leaders of Vietnam and Cuba, and an close companion of Vietnamese authorities.

The Vietnamese head of state highly regarded the comprehensive friendship, cooperation and trust that leaders and people of the two countries had been able to achieve over years of continued efforts in multiple sectors.

President Quang underlined Vietnam’s remembrance of late Cuban leader Fidel Castro, whose life’s work had been of significant importance to the prosperity of Vietnam-Cuba relations.

The Vietnamese leader hoped that the Cuban ambassador would continue to make active contributions to bilateral ties after finishing his tenure in Vietnam, as well as revisit the country in the near future.

State President Tran Dai Quang (R) talks with Cuban Ambassador to Vietnam Herminio López Díaz at the Office of the State President in Hanoi, August 28, 2017. Photo: Vietnam News Agency

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