China’s Top Military Officer Visits Cuba after US Tour
HAVANA TIMES — Col. Gen. Fang Fenghui, Chief of the General Staff of the Chinese Army, arrived in Havana at the head of a delegation “as proof of the ties of solidarity between China and Cuba,” Havana Radio reported Sunday.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army is the world’s largest military body.
Fang is the guest of Army Corps Gen. Alvaro López Miera (shown in photo above receiving Fenghui), Chief of the General Staff of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, who accompanied the Chinese visitors to the Cacahual Monument, which holds the remains of independence hero Antonio Maceo. There, Fang placed a memorial wreath.
The Chinese guests also toured the Rescate de Sanguily Tank Unit, where they were welcomed by the unit’s chief, Brig. Gen. Ignacio Borjas.
Havana Radio did not describe the specific reason for Fang’s trip or say how long the Chinese delegation will be in Cuba.
Fang flew to Havana from Washington, where he ended a five-day visit to the United States. In San Diego on Tuesday (May 13), he toured the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and the combat ship USS Coronado. He also observed Marine training at Camp Pendleton and met with the commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, Navy Adm. Samuel J. Locklear 3rd.
In Washington on Thursday (May 15), he visited the National Defense University.
During his stay in the capital, Fang met with Vice President Joe Biden, Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work.
At the Pentagon, he held talks with Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joints Chief of Staff, and wrapped up his tour at the U.S. Army Forces Command in Fort Bragg, N.C.
Fang was accompanied by Guan Youfei, chief of the foreign affairs office of the Chinese Defense Ministry, who told journalists in New York City that the delegation’s visit was intended to “implement the important consensus reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Obama on building a new Sino-American relationship based on mutual respect and win-win cooperation.”
To your list I will add the incomparable Cuban literature. For a small nation, Cuba has produced an astonishing number of excellent novelists, poets and dramatists.
Many of whom were, and some cases continue to be, persecuted by the Castro regime.
(1) The depth and breadth of musical talent. The average working jazz musician in Havana could headline anywhere else in the world. Access to hearing this talent perform is relatively easy. I paid 10 cuc to hear Chucho Valdes at the Jazz Café in Havana. In London, I paid $80.00 for the same show.
(2) The relative lack of crime in the streets. In the summertime, it is not uncommon to see children playing and the elderly free to walk the streets late at night free from fear.
(3) Despite the tropical heat, the lack of decent bathing facilities, Cubans manage to maintain the highest level of personal hygiene and make a significant effort to dress well. Visit Mumbai for a comparison.
All right then Moses lets call you out on this one, Castro’s aside name three positive things you see in Cuba. And please don’t say rum and cigars.
To be clear, every comment I have is bad “Castro” not Cuba. I hope that you don’t consider these to be the same thing. Likewise, I certainly don’t believe the “all good mighty USA” to be all good. Are you kidding? I am a middle-aged African-American. Still, I would not trade my US passport for a Cuban one. Would you?
Just making stuff up on what people are thinking, just so you can put Cuba down once again… Every comment you have is bad Cuba and all good mighty USA.. You need to give your head a shake.. You keep listing CNN there Moses… LOL
The only reason the Chinese are in Cuba is to assess whether they can sell military equipment to the Castros.
Sadly, not everybody knows that. Nonetheless, pride in US military dominance is nothing to be ashamed of. It doesn’t lead me to feel “high and mighty”. It leads me to feel free. Cuba spends a disproportionate amount of scarce budget resources on their military/police state. By your admission it is obvious that despite their expenditures that they could not last a whole day against their ‘enemy’ to the north. Then to what end does this expenditure serve? The only justification that makes sense is that the Castros are afraid of an internal uprising and use their military to maintain control of the Cuban people.
I think everybody already knows that. But if it makes you feel all high and mighty to point out the obvious…
So after Col. Gen. Fang tours the USS Ronald Reagan, the most technologically advanced carrier ever built, he then heads for Cuba. The Castros most senior naval officer accompanies Fang to tour Cuba’s fleet of “rowboats” during which he is subjected to the same ole’ blah, blah, blah about revolutionary naval strength, etc. He gets my vote for “Best Actor in an awkward situation”. Ya’ gotta’ know he just wanted to tell his Cuban comrades, ” if the Yankees come a callin’, your goose is cooked”.