In his Twitter account, the chief diplomat expressed his deepest condolences to his family, particularly to his wife, as well as to his colleagues and friends, and to his son, Carlos Fernandez de Cossío, who is deputy Foreign Minister.

Fernandez de Cossio Rodriguez died on Tuesday night in Havana, at the age of 89, after an outstanding career in the service of the homeland, according to Granma newspaper.

He participated in the underground struggle against the Fulgencio Batista’s dictatorship (1952-1959), and was president of the University Student Federation (FEU) and founding member of the Revolutionary Directorate 13 de Marzo.

For his combative actions he suffered imprisonment and torture at the hands of Batista’s dictatorship. He was part of the expedition of the Revolutionary Directorate that landed in Nuevitas, Camagüey (east) in February 1958.

After the revolutionary triumph of January 1, 1959, he occupied important leadership positions in the Ministry of Justice, the former State Committee for Economic Collaboration and the Ministry of Tourism. He joined the Cuban Communist Party in 1963.

He was a founder of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he held the positions of director and deputy minister; he also served as Ambassador to Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom and

Japan, and carried out numerous official missions in other countries.

At the time of his death, Fernandez de Cossio Rodriguez was working as professor at the Raul Roa Garcia Higher Institute of International Relations, where he contributed with his vast experience and revolutionary commitment to the training of the new generation of Cuban diplomats.

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