Canadian and Cuban Foreign Ministers Hold Meeting in TorontoCuba's Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, was received this Friday [June 7] by the Honorable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, during a working visit he paid to that country. This meeting follows up on a previous meeting that both foreign ministers had in Havana on May 16 last. The Foreign Minister of Cuba reiterated to his Canadian counterpart the concern of the Cuban authorities over the suspension of the granting of visas for Cuban citizens at the Canadian Consulate in Havana. He explained that this decision is already affecting exchanges in several areas of bilateral relations and is particularly affecting Cuban families, Canadian families and mixed families, which should go through a cumbersome procedure to get a visa, that includes the requirement to travel to a third country, with the consequent risks for their safety and the higher costs implied. He likewise reiterated that there isn't the least evidence of any risk that may jeopardize the safety of the diplomats of Canada or of any other country based in Havana. He also added that there is no reason whatsoever that may justify the withdrawal or reduction of the staff of the Canadian diplomatic mission in Havana. During the meeting, in which other aspects related to bilateral relations were also discussed, Rodríguez Parrilla once again expressed his appreciation for the stand adopted by the Canadian government against the implementation of the Helms-Burton Act as well as for the traditional support given by Canada to the Resolution against the blockade that is adopted every year by the United Nations General Assembly. In the meeting, both ministers exchanged on the regional and international situation. The Cuban Foreign Minister reiterated Cuba's firm and unwavering solidarity with Constitutional President Nicolás Maduro Moros, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the civic and military union of its people and called upon the Canadian minister to support the initiative of a respectful dialogue with the Venezuelan Government based on the principles of International Law and the postulates of the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, in particular the rejection of the use and the threat of use of force, equal sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of States and the implementation of unilateral coercive measures that cause humanitarian damages. The Cuban Foreign Minister was accompanied by Josefina Vidal Ferreiro, Cuban ambassador to Canada, and other officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cuba. Also present at the meeting was Michael Douglas Grant, Deputy Foreign Minister of Canada. (Cuban Foreign Ministry, June 7, 2019)
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