President Enrique Peña Nieto will travel to Havana this afternoon to attend the funeral of former Cuban President Fidel Castro. The official ceremony in the Plaza de la Revolución, which will be attended by heads of state and government officials, will take place at 7 p.m. local time. Peña Nieto will be part of a group of presidents who will give a message in honor of Castro.
Peña Nieto will be received at the José Martí International Airport in Havana by Mexico’s ambassador to the island, Enrique Martínez y Martínez. Foreign Relations Secretary (SRE) Claudia Ruiz Massieu, Head of the Presidency Office Francisco Guzmán Ortiz, Chief of Presidential Staff Roberto Francisco Miranda and presidential spokesman Eduardo Sanchez, among others, will also be accompanying Peña Nieto.
President Peña Nieto last met with Fidel Castro on Jan. 30, 2014. He was received for an hour in Castro’s home where they discussed various topics. The meeting was held as part of the Mexican state’s visit to the island, where he also attended the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States Summit (Celac).
After the death of Fidel Castro was announced on Friday night, President Peña Nieto wrote on Twitter that “Fidel Castro was a friend of Mexico, promoter of a bilateral relationship based on respect, dialogue, and solidarity.” Castro died Nov. 25 at the age of 90.
