Díaz-Canel thanked the visitor for including Cuba in his tour of countries in the region.

Patrushev came accompanied by Russian high-sphere representatives to strengthen and expand bilateral relations.

During the meeting held on Monday, the head of State recalled that significant steps are being taken in relations between the two peoples, including signing documents on Russian-Cuban cooperation.

He noted that the number of charter and regular flights between the two countries has increased. In addition, Russian tourism had the highest growth rate in Cuba last year, and Russia is currently the third major tourist market in Cuba.

The Cuban president took the opportunity to send greetings to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, recognizing his leadership in the international arena.

Patrushev, in turn, thanked Díaz-Canel for the reception and his words about the Russian leader, from whom he conveyed his greetings, the national television reported.

The secretary of the Russian Security Council highlighted the excellent bilateral relations and pointed out the intense dialogue between Russia and Cuba in several areas.

Nikolai Patrushev also met on Monday with the leader of the Cuban Revolution, Raul Castro.

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