President Nguyen Minh Triet praised the Cuban Government, and its President Raul Castro, for what they have done to further consolidate the unity bloc and strengthen the prestige and voice of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in the international arena.

President Triet expressed this at his meeting with President of the State Council and Ministers’ Council of Cuba, Raul Castro, on the sidelines of the 15 th NAM Summit in Egypt on July 16.

The two Presidents discussed a host of socio-economic issues, preparations for their upcoming party congresses, and regional and international matters of mutual concern.

They affirmed that the special relations between Vietnam and Cuba are a valuable asset to the two nations and a great source of encouragement for the revolutionary cause of each country.

The two leaders, therefore, agreed that the celebration of the 50 th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic ties is extremely important and that practical activities should be held in various areas to help young generations understand more clearly the two countries’ special ties, and work to enhance them further.

President Triet suggested the two countries increase the exchange of visits and contacts between senior leaders, and officials from ministries and socio-political organisations as well as raise economic and trade ties to equal the currently-growing political ties.

The two countries need to continue collaborating and supporting each other in international organisations, multilateral forums, and especially in the fight against those who have exploited democratic and human rights issues to subvert the revolutionary cause in each country.

Meeting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak the same day, President Triet praised Egypt for its contributions to the success of the 15 th NAM Summit.

The Vietnamese leader said he hoped that as the NAM chair in the coming years, Egypt and President Mubarak will spare no efforts to speed up the development of the movement as well as bolster cooperation among non-aligned countries in order to enhance the movement’s prestige and role in the international arena.

The Egyptian President said he highly valued President Triet’s presence at the summit and affirmed that Egypt also values the role and contributions made by Vietnam to the NAM .

He also expressed the wish to intensify and further expand his country’s friendship and cooperation with Vietnam./.