The Council of State of Cuba decreed Friday a day of national mourning after the death of President Tran Dai Quang, state media reported.

President Tran Dai Quang ̣(r) receives First Vice President of the Councils of State and Ministers of Cuba Salvador Valdés Mesa in Hanoi on September 13.VNA/VNS Photo Nhan Sang

During the period of mourning the Cuban flag will be hoisted at half mast in public buildings and military institutions, the statement said.

The decree also states that public shows and festive activities will be suspended during the mourning period.

The president of the National Assembly of People's Power of Cuba, Esteban Lazo, sent his condolences to the people of Vietnam on Friday during a meeting held in Havana with the main representatives of the provincial assemblies of that governing body, in which a minute of silence was dedicated to the memory of the leader of the Asian country.

The First Vice-President, Salvador Valdés recently traveled to Vietnam and during the visit he was received by Tran Dai Quang, who was already ill.

The head of the Cuban Parliament highlighted the friendship that unites his country and Vietnam, and recalled that during the visit of Tran Dai Quang to the island in November 2016, Havana was officially inaugurated as the institutional seat of the National Assembly.

He also stressed that the Vietnamese president was the last head of state who met with the historical leader of the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro, before his death on Nov. 25, 2016.

As soon as the death of the President was known, Cuban ambassador to Vietnam, Lianys Torres, in a working mission in another province, called Prensa Latina by phone to express the sorrow overcoming her compatriots at this moment. "President Tran Dai Quang was a great friend of Cuba, firm promoter of the historic brotherly links between our nations," she said.

President Tran Dai Quang passed away at 10:05am on September 21 in Hanoi at the age of 62 due to serious illness.

He was elected State President of Vietnam at the 11^th session of the 13^th National Assembly on April 2, 2016./.

VNF