MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Cuba remains the most trustworthy Russian partner in Latin American and Caribbean States, the speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament, Sergei Naryshkin, said Thursday.
"Cuba remains our most reliable and trustworthy partner in Latin America and the Caribbean Basin… I would love to stress one more time, that we are fully satisfied with the level of our countries' multidimensional cooperation, which completely reflects a strategic nature of Russia-Cuban relations," Naryshkin said at a meeting with Cuban parliamentary president Esteban Lazo Hernandez.
Cuba and Russia have enjoyed warm relations dating back to Soviet times, as both countries shared communism ideology which brought them closer together. Moscow and Havana cooperate closely through ministerial and parliamentary channels. In July 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Cuba where he declared Russia's intention to invest in Cuba's offshore oil industry.