MOSCOW, October 20 (RIA Novosti) - Cuba and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) signed agreements Friday on the expansion of bilateral trade ties, Cuba’s state daily Granma reported.
The documents facilitating commercial exchange, payments and conditions for the transfer of goods between the two countries, “will contribute to the diversification of Cuba’s trade exchange,” noted North Korea’s Ambassador to Cuba Pak Chang Yul. Details about the agreements are still unknown. Pak signed the agreement with Cuban Foreign Trade and Investment Minister Rodrigo Malmierca at a ceremony held at the Trade Ministry building in Havana.
“The signing of these agreements confirms the will of the governments of both countries toward the strengthening of trade relations on the basis of excellent political relations and friendship,” Cuban newspaper Juventud Rebelde said.
Cuba and the DPRK established ties in 1960 shortly after Fidel Castro took power. Despite some ideological differences, the two countries regularly work together in the international arena. Military and commercial ties between the two communist states have increased since Raul Castro came to power in 2008. Last year the countries’ relationship was scrutinized following the interception of a ship carrying obsolete Cuban weapons to North Korea in Panama.
