Havana, June 5 (RHC) -– Auburn University’s College of Agriculture in the U.S. state of Alabama has partnered with the Agrarian University of Havana and the Cuban National Center for Animal and Plant Health, allowing faculty and student exchange programs to collaborate on research efforts, according to a press release.

This partnership between the Cuban and American institutions came six months after Cuba and the U.S. announced they would work to restore ties.

Henry Fadamiro, assistant dean of the College of Agriculture and Office of Global Programs director, along with administrators from the other two institutions, signed the five-year international academic interchange agreement in Varadero, Cuba.

This partnership started five years ago when faculty and administrators at the College of Agriculture began to establish academic relationships with Cuba.

This treaty is one of the first such agreements between Cuba and an American university since Washington broke relations with Havana in 1961.