Havana, March 24 (RHC) Russia´s foreign minister Serguei Lavrov is paying a working visit to Cuba on Tuesday as part of a tour that will also take him to Guatemala, Nicaragua and Colombia.

Cuba´s Foreign Ministry announced that Lavrov will meet with his local counterpart Bruno Rodriguez.

According to Russian diplomatic sources, minister Lavrov will attend as guest a ministerial meeting of the Central American Integration System.

Lavrov has reiterated Moscow´s interest in deepening cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean and its willingness to participate in integration initiatives, such as the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), the South Common Market (MERCOSUR), and the blocs with the participation of different regional groups from the Central American Integration System (SICA).

Russia and Cuba share excellent bilateral relations. In the political arena, Moscow has maintained a firm stance against the over-50-year US economic, commercial and financial blockade of Cuba.