Grenada and Cuba celebrate 25 years of diplomatic relations

by Leroy Noel

Thursday, April 8, 2004

ST. GEORGE‘S, Grenada: The tiny island of Grenada known as the Spice Isle of the Caribbean is celebrating 25 years of diplomatic relations with the Spanish speaking nation of Cuba.

Grenada followed its larger neighbours, namely Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Guyana.

The Cuban and the Grenadian people have known each other and have created bonds during the first decades of the 20th century when a number of Grenadian citizens travelled to Cuba to work in the sugar cane industry. Some of them married to Cuban women and founded families and remained there.

Grenada and Cuba established diplomatic relations on 14th April 1979, shortly after the March 13 revolution led by the New Jewel Movement in which Maurice Bishop became Prime Minister.

Between 1980 and 1983, Prime Minister Maurice Bishop paid five working-transit visits to Cuba. A number of delegations from both countries were also exchanged.

Immediate after the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the two countries, and in accordance with the agreements reached, Cuba started to provide cooperation assistance to Grenada in different fields, among them, education, health, culture, roads, fishing, housing, communications, construction, and sports.

Grenadian students received scholarships to study in Cuban universities and other centers of higher education, while Cuban specialists were in Grenada providing their expertise and training Grenadians in various fields.

One of the most important areas of cooperation was the construction of the new international airport at Point Saline, a crucial facility for the economic and social development of Grenada.

Due to the events of 25th October 1983, twenty-four Cuban construction workers lost their lives fighting the U.S. invaders.

While the bilateral relations were not severed, the Cuban Embassy was requested to be closed, and all the bilateral cooperation ceased. Nevertheless the Grenadian students who were studying in Cuba continued their studies.

In March, 1992 the bilateral relations between the two countries were normalized.

In April 1994 Cuba appointed a non resident Ambassador to Grenada, based in Barbados.

In April 1997 Dr. Keith Mitchell, Prime Minister of Grenada paid an official visit to Cuba and, during his stay, several agreements were signed, in particular the Agreement on economic and scientific-technical bilateral cooperation.

In August 1998, President of Cuba, Dr. Fidel Castro paid an official visit to Grenada. Resulting from the talks between the two leaders, an agreement was reached regarding the assistance from Cuba in the construction of the new General Hospital of St. George’s, which included the training of the necessary staff for the different services of the new hospital.

In March 1999 Dr. Mitchell paid a second official visit to Cuba. He visited Cuba also in the year 2000, 2002 and 2003, on the occasion of regional or international meetings.

On 1st. December 1999, Grenada and Cuba simultaneously opened Embassies in each country at the level of Charge d’ Affairs, and in the last quarter of 2002 both countries upgraded their diplomatic missions with resident Ambassadors.

From 1997 up to today, a number of Cuban professionals have been working in Grenada, cooperating in different areas like education, health, sport, culture, construction, housing, and agriculture.

There are around two hundred Grenadians graduated from Cuban universities and other centers of high education. Cuba had continued to grant scholarship to Grenadian students and around one hundred Grenadians are currently studying in Cuba.

Cuban President Fidel Castro reminded Caribbean governments that as early as January 1959, the local government of what was still the British colony of Guyana, led by Dr. Cheddi Jagan, leader of the People’s Progressive Party, had declared its solidarity with the Cuban Revolution.

He added that in the second half of 1972, Guyana hosted a meeting of the Movement of Non-Aligned Countries. Comrade Raul Roa, Foreign Minister of Dignity, headed the Cuban delegation.

Guyana’s foreign minister at the time was Sir Shridath Ramphall, who was invited to this meeting for the role he played and continues to play in support of regional integration, particularly the integration of Cuba not only into the Caribbean, but also into the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of Nations (ACP).

That meeting served as a prelude to the decision made by the Prime Ministers of Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago to establish relations with Cuba.

President Castro emphasized that in deciding to establish diplomatic relations with Cuba, the leaders of those countries, considered the founding fathers of both the independence of their nations and of Caribbean integration – Errol Barrow of Barbados, Forbes Burnham of Guyana, Michael Manley of Jamaica, and Eric Williams of Trinidad and Tobago – realized that they were charting the course for what would later become the foreign policy of the Caribbean Community, characterized until today by three main features: independence, courage and concerted action.

Diplomatic relations were officially established on December 8, 1972, in ceremonies held simultaneously at the Jamaican Mission to the United Nations and the Cuban Embassy in Ottawa. Subsequently, as they achieved their independence and joined the Caribbean family, the other CARICOM countries established full diplomatic relations with Cuba as well.

Shortly after 1979 Maurice Bishop and his new Jewel Movement decided to follow suit and established relations with Cuba. President Castro described it this way, "this unquestionably brave political decision, adopted by small and newly independent countries in a climate of hostility and enormous pressures, was a fundamental step toward breaking the diplomatic and trade blockade on Cuba in the region, and a breach in the isolation imposed on Cuba through the OAS. Our country will never forget this noble gesture on the part of its Caribbean brothers".
 

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