OREANDA-NEWS. Russia intends to increase economic cooperation with Cuba, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday at a meeting with Cuban counterpart Bruno Rodriguez.

The meeting was part of a short visit by the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry to Santiago de Cuba. "Minister and friend, I am very pleased to meet you here in our heroic city of Santiago de Cuba. We are very satisfied with the level of our exchanges. We will continue our work in accordance with projects in various fields. I would like to say that we recognize and admire the role that the Russian Federation plays in protecting international peace, law and security. This is also an important year, since we are celebrating an important anniversary of our bilateral relations, we will celebrate it both in Moscow and in Havana", Rodriguez said.

“I sincerely appreciate the reception you hosted by my delegation. I fully share your assessment of our relations”, Lavrov said in turn. "Of course, top-level contacts will continue this year. We are waiting for the Cuban president in Moscow to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the victory in World War II and the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations", the Russian Foreign Minister added.

According to him, the Cuban delegations are expected to take part in a number of other events that are coming in the coming months, including the International Security Conference, the International Legal Forum, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and other events.