Havana, May 26 (RHC)-- Cuba and Antigua and Barbuda celebrated 20 years of medical collaboration amid the confrontation of the COVID-19 pandemic and as a sign of almost three decades of bilateral ties.

In statements to Prensa Latina news agency via Internet, the Cuban Ambassador to the Twin Islands, María Esther Fiffe, highlighted the dedication and humility of the health collaborators, who are currently supporting the care of sick patients with COVID-19.

The date coincides with the arrival two months ago of the group of 25 graduate nurses from the Henry Reeve Brigade who arrived to complement the work of the rest of the Cuban specialists against the pandemic.

Fiffe praised the professionalism of the Cuban collaborators in their daily work in the emergency rooms, intensive care units, surgery, pediatrics, hemodialysis and in the care of the infected in the Mount Saint John Medical Center in the capital.

According to the head of the diplomatic mission, there are currently 59 health collaborators in the territory of Antigua and Barbuda, including doctors, nurses and technicians, who extol the history of internationalism in Cuban medicine.

In this context, authorities such as Prime Minister Gaston Browne, the Governor General Rodney Williams and Foreign Minister Chet Greene, highlighted the courage and efforts of the Cuban collaborators in offering their services and solidarity to many nations in the fight against COVID-19.

Likewise, the government of Antigua and Barbuda ratified the rejection of the economic blockade that the United States maintains on Cuba, while highlighting the excellent state of the diplomatic relations established on April 6, 1994.

In addition to the collaboration in the field of health, Cuban construction personnel, mechanics, engineers and architects, as well as representatives of the Electrical Union share their experiences in the geography of the twin islands, in favor of the development and quality of life of their inhabitants.

Cuba also offers annual scholarships to young Antiguans and Barbudans to study medicine, nursing and other health-related careers.

Antigua and Barbuda has reported 25 positive cases of COVID-19 for more than three weeks, with three deaths and 20 recovered, and is close to becoming a pandemic-free destination, according to health officials.