President Raul Castro officially receives today his U.S. peer, Barack Obama, with whom he will hold talks in the context of the first visit of an American president to the island in almost 90 years.
President Raul Castro officially receives today his U.S. peer, Barack Obama, with whom he will hold talks in the context of the first visit of an American president to the island in almost 90 years.
During the second day of stay in Havana, Obama will pay tribute to National Hero Jose Marti at the mausoleum dedicated to the Cuban independence hero at the Revolution Square, site of the Executive, and perform other activities.
According to the agenda, before traveling to Argentina tomorrow, Obama will deliver a speech at the Alicia Alonso Gran Teatro in Havana and attend a baseball match between the Cuban team and the Tampa Bay Rays.
After arriving in yesterday at the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana, the visiting president toured the historic center of this city, declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1982.
Under a persistent drizzle, which accompanied him since the arrival of Air Force One airplane, the U.S. president began his tour at Havana's Plaza de Armas, guided by Havana City Historian, Eusebio Leal.
He was also interested in other buildings of historical importance, such as the Palacio de los Capitanes Generales, the seat of government during the colonial era.
As part of the tour the U.S. head of State did along with his wife, Michelle Obama, and daughters, Malia and Sasha, visited the Havana Cathedral, a temple of great architectural, religious and cultural value, headquarters of the archdioceses of the Catholic Church in the city.
Obama´s visit to the Caribbean nation is an important moment of the process that began on December 17, 2014, when Presidents Obama and Raul Castro announced the decision to restore diplomatic relations, interrupted for more than 50 years.
The two heads of State held official meetings during the 7th Summit of the Americas in Panama and the United Nations headquarters, in April and September 2015, respectively.
The two countries resumed diplomatic relations on July 20, 2015 and their interest sections became embassies.