An Indian Left delegation has travelled to Havana with essential medicines, including life-saving drugs for cancer and heart-related illnesses, as Cuba continues to face severe economic pressure and shortages amid longstanding US sanctions.
A seven-member delegation led by CPI(M) Politburo member Biju Krishnan has visited the Cuban capital to participate in a major international discussion titled “Fidel: Legacy and Future”. More than 1,500 people, including over 900 representatives from 63 countries, are taking part in the event.
The visit also carries historical significance for India’s Left movement. More than three decades ago, then CPI(M) general secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet travelled to Cuba with wheat and rice as part of an Indian solidarity effort. Fidel Castro, the iconic leader of the Cuban Revolution, reportedly described the assistance as “bread sent by India” for the Cuban people.
This time, ahead of Fidel Castro’s birth centenary, representatives of the CPI(M) and CPI have taken medicines to Havana. The supplies include drugs intended to support patients suffering from cancer, heart disease and other serious illnesses.
Alongside the humanitarian initiative, Indian Left leaders have once again strongly criticised the economic and other restrictions imposed by the United States on Cuba. They have argued that such measures have created additional difficulties for ordinary Cubans and affected access to essential goods and medicines.
The delegation’s visit is being presented by the Indian Left as a renewed expression of solidarity with the Cuban people and a continuation of the historic relationship between the Left movement in India and revolutionary Cuba.
