Havana, December 1 (RHC) -— The President of the Republic of Congo, Denis Sassou Ngueso, is paying an official visit to Cuba beginning Monday. During his stay, he is slated to hold official talks with Cuban President Raul Castro.

Denis Sassou Nguesa is a founding member of the Congolese Workers Party. He was appointed defense minister in 1975 and after the assassination of President Marien Ngouabi in 1977, he took power as acting president.

In 1979, Nguesa was elected president of the Congolese Workers Party and became head of state of Congo Brazzaville.

In 1986, he was elected acting president of the Organization of African Unity and head of the Central African States Economic Commission. He left the presidency of his country in August 1992 and later in 1997, he and his forces took the capital city sending a message of national reconciliation. That same month, he was sworn in head of state, and reelected in 2002 and 2009.

In 2006, he was elected president of the African Union, the former Organization of African Unity, for the second time.