A congress was held in the southern province of Long An on April 27 to establish the Vietnam-Cuba Friendship Association on the occasion of the 55 th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

The congress elected a 19-member executive board for the period 2015-2020, led by Vice Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee Tran Thi Nhanh.

The establishment of the association aims to consolidate and develop the traditional relations and cooperation between two nations, especially between the provincial people and Cuban communities.

The congress set targets on increasing people-to-people exchanges as well as implementing programmes on economics, culture, education, science-technology and environment protection, which benefit the two peoples.

Speaking at the congress, Nhanh stated that the association will launch practical activities to fulfill its targets, contributing to tightening and promoting the traditional relations.

In the past 55 years, two countries have fostered collaboration across many fields, especially health, industry, agriculture, communication and defence security enforcement.-VNA