Thaindian News

Havana, Aug 24 (EFE) Cuban leader Fidel Castro has met Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, the official Juventud Rebelde newspaper reported in an article that featured a photograph of both men standing and wearing white sport shirts.
Castro and Correa had “a thorough exchange of impressions … about the current revolutionary situation of both peoples in the search for greater social equity and justice”, the newspaper said.

“In a broad and sincere dialogue, they discussed the advances made by the citizen’s revolution being pushed by Correa, in particular in economic, education and health matters,” said Juventud Rebelde, the only daily published on the communist island on Sundays.

They also spoke at their meeting Friday of the current international situation, cultural and historical matters and the friendship between Ecuador and Cuba, the newspaper said.

Fidel Castro, who turned 83 on Aug 13, has not appeared in public since July 2006 for health reasons, but he has received — with relative frequency — key figures from other countries for chats and discussions at which publicity photos and some videotapes have been taken and later released.

Correa arrived in Havana Friday with his wife, Anne Malherbe, for a visit described as being a “vacation, to rest for about four days”, Ecuadorian Ambassador to Cuba Universi Zambrano told EFE.

This is the second visit to Cuba this year for the 46-year-old Correa.

On the first official visit, in January, he met his Cuban counterpart, Raul Castro, but not Raul’s older brother and predecessor.