At 8:30 in the morning, the Palace of the Revolution in Havana opened its doors to receive the Heads of State and Government, prime ministers and high-level officials who will participate in the XX Summit of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America-Peoples’ Trade Treaty (ALBA-TCP), whose plenary session is held this Tuesday in connection with the 17th anniversary of its foundation.
After a brief tour of the staircase leading to the main entrance of the Palace of the Revolution, the central structure of the Plaza de la Revolución Complex, Latin American and Caribbean leaders are received with honors by the President of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, and the Foreign Minister of Cuba, Bruno Rodríguez, as hosts of the first meeting held in person since the beginning of the pandemic.
The first to arrive at the building that serves as the headquarters of the Presidency, Council of Ministers and Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba is the executive secretary of ALBA-TCP, Sacha Llorenti, who ratified the strength and relevance of the regional bloc to face the effects of COVID-19, as well as unilateral coercive measures imposed on Member States.
The waving flag of the Greater Antilles also received the presidents of Bolivia, Luis Arce, and of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega; the Prime Ministers of Grenada, Keith Mitchell, and of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Ralph Gonsalves; as well as high-level delegations from Saint Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica and Saint Lucia.
Meanwhile, the President of the Republic, Nicolás Maduro, arrived at 9:05 in the morning in the company of the Foreign Minster of the Republic, Félix Plasencia. Before entering the room that will host the political debate, he exchanged words with his Cuban counterpart, Miguel Díaz-Canel, who received him with a hug and a shake of hands as a sign of camaraderie and solidarity.
The XX ALBA-TCP Summit aims to discuss joint post-pandemic political, economic and social strategies, as well as articulation mechanisms to strengthen regional integration.