CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA E-mail: rhc@radiohc.org http://www.radiohc.org The following items are taken from Radio Havana Cuba's news service for Thursday, June 18, 1998. Today's stories: 1.- MEXICAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROSARIO GREEN TO PAY OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA BEGINNING MONDAY 2.- CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO ATTENDS INAUGURAL CEREMONY OF THE SECOND WORLD ENCOUNTER ON SPECIAL EDUCATION 3.- SECOND U.S.-CUBA BUSINESS SUMMIT SCHEDULED FOR SEPTEMBER 4.- CUBAN ECONOMY CONTINUES TO SLOWLY IMPROVE DESPITE COMPLEXITIES ON THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET 5.- CANADA'S AMBASSADOR BEFORE THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES ARRIVES IN HAVANA 6.- HOLLYWOOD BRAND CIGARETTES NOW PRODUCED IN CUBA MEXICAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROSARIO GREEN TO PAY OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA BEGINNING MONDAY Havana, June 18(RHC)-- Mexican Foreign Minister Rosario Green will begin an official visit to Cuba beginning Monday, June 22nd, at the head of a large and high-ranking Mexican government delegation. The Cuban Foreign Ministry stressed today that Mexico is a close friend of Cuba and that the visit goes beyond an official character, to become "an embrace of brothers and sisters." At his weekly news conference, Cuban Foreign Ministry spokesman Alejandro Gonzalez said that Mexico "has contributed a great deal to Cuba's independence and has always supported Cuba's right to self- determination and to belong to the Latin American and Caribbean family." Mexico is the only Latin American nation that did not break relations with Cuba following the island's 1959 revolutionary triumph -- as did the rest of the region under pressure from Washington. Mexico is also the country where, during the 1950s, Fidel Castro and his followers prepared the expedition that initiated Cuba's liberation war. Mexico and Cuba will revise virtually all aspects of cooperation and trade between the two countries. Three important gatherings will be held: the 7th Meeting of the Mexico-Cuba Intergovernmental Commission, the 10th Session of the Mexico-Cuba Intergovernmental Task Force on Economic and Industrial Cooperation and the Fourth Gathering of the Cuba-Mexico Bilateral Committee on the War Against Drug Trafficking and Drug Addiction. High-ranking officials from Mexico's Foreign Ministry will take part in the meetings, along with representatives from the Ministries of Treasury, Public Credit, Trade and Industrial Promotion, Communications, Transportation and Tourism, as well as representatives from the country's National Bank of Foreign Trade. Shortly before the meeting was announced, Cuba's ambassador in Mexico said that due to the fall in oil prices, Cuba will be able to buy more crude from Mexico this year -- although he did not specify the amount. According to Cuban sources, trade relations between the two countries are favorable for Mexico. While Cuba only sold 25 million dollars worth of goods to Mexico last year, Mexico sold some 400 million to Cuba. CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO ATTENDS INAUGURAL CEREMONY OF THE SECOND WORLD ENCOUNTER ON SPECIAL EDUCATION Havana, June 18(RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro attended the inaugural ceremony of the Second World Encounter on Special Education, held at Havana's Karl Marx Theater on Wednesday. Cuban Education Minister Luis Ignacio Gomez addressed the nearly 1500 delegates accredited to the event. He pointed to the island's attention to special education, calling it "a battle of love and hope." The Cuban official spoke about the island's developments in special education, which includes kindergarten and pre-school. He emphasized that while delegates were meeting in Havana, they must not forget that 33,000 children die each day of hunger or preventable diseases. The President of the World Association on Special Education, Dr. Orlando Terre Camacho, also spoke at the inaugural ceremony on Wednesday. He said that of the more than 138 million children born each year, 12 million die due to preventable diseases before reaching the age of five, 34 million will never learn to read and over 70 million will have to go to work before the age of six. Dr. Camacho dedicated this international event to Cuba's National Hero and teacher, Jose Marti, "honoring all teachers in the world that build hope with their daily work." SECOND U.S.-CUBA BUSINESS SUMMIT SCHEDULED FOR SEPTEMBER Havana, June 18(RHC)-- The Alamar Associates, a Washington, DC-based advisory group, has announced that the Second U.S.-Cuba Business Summit will take place in Cancun and Havana next September. Observers attribute the growing interest in these bilateral meetings to U.S. businesses that are concerned they are losing ground to European and Canadian firms in the Cuban market. Among the issues that will be discussed during the business summit will be the current state of the Cuban economy, business opportunities on the island and the implication of U.S. laws prohibiting trade with Cuba. More than 50 U.S. business representatives took part in the First U.S.- Cuba Business Summit which was held last March. The President of Alamar Associates and organizer of the meetings, Kirby Jones, said that U.S. businesses are looking for a direct dialogue with Cuba. He added that the visit to Cuba offers business executives the possibility of meeting Cuban leaders and getting a first-hand look at commercial possibilities in Cuba. The event is also sponsored by the National Council on Foreign Trade, "USA Engage," and various international firms that do business with Cuba. CUBAN ECONOMY CONTINUES TO SLOWLY IMPROVE DESPITE COMPLEXITIES ON THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET Havana, June 18(RHC)-- The Cuban economy continues to slowly recover despite the island's current difficulties, according to Cuban Economic and Planning Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez. The Cuban official referred to the island's economy during an evaluation of the first four months of this year. Regarding prices on the international market, the Cuban Economic and Planning Minister said that on the one hand, oil prices have decreased which is beneficial to the island. But there are also negative factors, such as the drop in nickel and sugar prices, which has hurt the Cuban market. Jose Luis Rodriguez stated that nickel and sugar are the island's two most exportable products. CANADA'S AMBASSADOR BEFORE THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES ARRIVES IN HAVANA Havana, June 18(RHC)-- Canada's Ambassador before the Organization of American States, Peter Boehm, has arrived in Cuba to begin a two-day visit. During his stay, the Canadian official will offer conferences on the OAS and will visit the University of Havana and other places of interest in the Cuban capital. HOLLYWOOD BRAND CIGARETTES NOW PRODUCED IN CUBA Havana, June 18(RHC)-- Hollywood cigarettes, a brand with great international prestige, are now being produced by the Cuban-Brazilian joint venture BRASCUBA. The cigarettes are aimed at the domestic and Caribbean market. On the occasion of the second anniversary of BRASCUBA, the island's Agriculture Minister Alfredo Jordan said that the joint venture has had excellent results. He added that Cuba has learned from the experience of BRASCUBA, benefitting the rest of the national cigarette industry. The agriculture minister emphasized that the earnings from the sale of cigarettes are invested in the island's food program. [c] 1998, Radio Habana Cuba All rights reserved Articles cannot be reproduced, reprinted or published in any system without the consent of RHC. 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