“Cuba and Qatar have created the mechanisms to reach a higher level in economic and trade relations“said Miguel Díaz-Canel this Sunday in a meeting with thirty of the most influential businessmen in the Arabian-Persian Gulf, before traveling to Iran, where he is already continuing his official tour.
According to a statement published on the official website of the Presidency, the participants were led by Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassimm Al-Thani, President of Qatar Businessmen’s Association and Head of Al Faisal Holding; Aisha Alfardan, Vice President of Qatar Business Women’s Association, and Jiskala Khalayli, Executive Director of the women’s group.
We are already in the Islamic Republic of Iran, a nation with which we share historic ties of friendship and cooperation.
This official visit will be an opportunity to further strengthen relations in various areas for the benefit of both peoples. pic.twitter.com/fahrHceLrq
— Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez (@DiazCanelB) December 4, 2023
In the exchange, attended by Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, the Qatari business community was informed of the government’s interests in establishing companies in Cuba, included in the so-called “Portfolio of Opportunities”, and through “Sectors prioritized in the National Economic and Social Development Plan to 2030“.
For the regime, the investments that Qataris can make are essential “in electricity generation, renewable energy development, tourism and real estate development, wholesale and retail trade, contract production of food for domestic consumption and export both to Qatar as well as in the USA.” Among other things, in the Caribbean region.
The officials advertised the pCuban biotechnological and pharmaceutical products, tourism and professional services with a focus on healthcare servicesincluding bachelor’s and master’s training on the island.
In the opening remarks of the meeting, Díaz-Canel told businessmen that in the dialogue held earlier with Sheikh Tamin bin Hamad Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, “reinvigoration of economic and commercial cooperation” was discussed as one of the fundamental themes of the official discussions.
According to the President, several projects have been proposed and “there is an intention on both sides to further develop economic and trade relations and bring them to the same level as political-diplomatic relations, which represent very high relations.”
He mentioned the consensus reached by the official delegations Creation of an intergovernmental economic commission and a binational economic committee, which, in addition to improving exchanges, will contribute to a better knowledge of the Qatari business community about the economic and commercial opportunities and potential of the Cuban government.
One of the most visible faces of Havana-Doha relations is the export of Cuban medical personnel. This Sunday, Díaz-Canel dedicated more than 300 professionals who work in the Cuban hospital in Dukhan, inaugurated in January 2012.
Rody Cervantes Silva, head of the Cuban medical brigade in Qatar, described the ruler’s visit as “a breath of fresh air” during an event where there was no shortage of praise from Díaz-Canel.
Very good meeting also with a representative of the Qatar Chamber of Commerce led by its President, Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani.
We look at investment opportunities in #Cuba and the willingness to strengthen the connections between them @Camara_Comercio And @Qatar_Chamber. pic.twitter.com/quIccNyMDK
— Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez (@DiazCanelB) December 3, 2023
1,232 Cuban health professionals, spread across 13 institutions, work in Qatar. 550 employees work in the Cuban hospital alone.
The center’s modernity, white color and impeccable cleanliness contrast with the chaos in Cuba’s hospitals, amid a general crisis that the president described as a “complex moment.”
“This shows the value of Cuban medicine, the Cuban health system,” said the president.
In December 2019, the Qatari Ministry of Health awarded Dukhan Cuban Hospital with the Annual Stars of Excellence Award. This was revealed by an investigation by the Guardian a month earlier The Cuban regime deprived these workers of 90% of their salaries.
In December 2022, the NGO Prisoners Defenders accused Qatar of complicity with the Cuban regime in employing doctors in slave-like conditions. Italy and Mexico were also blamed.
Before arriving in Iran, Díaz-Canel, Israel’s arch-enemy, mediated on behalf of Hamas his meeting with Tamim bin Hamad al Thanicon.
The Emir of Qatar said in his official report “Our joint efforts in international forums to stop Israeli aggression and achieve lasting peace for occupied Palestine.”
Although it has no relations with Israel, Qatar hosts Hamas’s political office and is one of the main mediators in the conflict, along with Egypt and the United States. The conflict between this Palestinian group and Israel began on October 7th.
The Persian Gulf country, with one of the most important economies in the region and one of the world’s largest gas exporters, joined Egypt and the United States in brokering the ceasefire, which lasted from November 24 to 30 and marked a pause in the war, which erupted on October 7 after the Islamist group’s militants attacked Israel, killing more than 1,000 people.
The Cuban regime has never condemned Hamas’ killing of civilians. Instead, it has launched a strong campaign in favor of Palestine, which included a large march along Havana’s Malecon in which Palestinian residents of the island displayed posters with photos of that armed group’s leaders.