Managua, July 20 (RHC) -- Cuban First Vice President Miguel Diaz-Canel said in Managua that the people of Nicaragua have been brothers and sisters of Cuba as there are many chapters in history uniting both nations.

Diaz-Canel, who headed the Cuban delegation to celebrations in Nicaragua for the 36th anniversary of the Popular Sandinista Revolution, said that Nicaragua has always backed Cuba's struggle against the U.S. economic, commercial and financial blockade and played a very active role in the fight for the release of the five Cuban anti-terrorist fighters who were held for over 16 years in U.S. prisons.

The two countries support each other at international forums and are fully integrated into the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our Americas and the PetroCaribe energy program.

Nicaragua gave Cuba the opportunity to participate in different stages of its history with projects that have brought benefits to the Nicaraguan people, and Cubans are proud to act as collaborators, technicians and experts in such projects, said Diaz-Canel.

The top Cuban government official said that both nations must coordinate efforts to expand trade and economic exchange.