The Granma daily, the newspaper of the Communist Party of Cuba, has run many articles praising the undaunted spirit of Vietnamese people during the past wars against French and U.S. forces, as well as the present cause of national construction and defence.

In 1966, Army General Raúl Castro Ruz visited Vietnam and met President Ho Chi Minh. (Source: en.granma.cu)

On April 6^th, 2018, the newspaper published an article title “Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh” which recalled the late President’s call for national resistance on December 20^th, 1946.

It stressed that the Vietnamese revolution’s victory was a great blow to U.S. imperialism and the world's reactionary forces.

The article said today independent and unified, Vietnam is one of the most solid victorious revolutions in contemporary human history, both theoretically and practically.

“The extraordinary courage of the Vietnamese and the wise leadership of Ho Chi Minh won solidarity in practically all corners of the planet. Cubans, led by Fidel Castro, were pioneers in organizing solidarity activities,” it stressed.

The Vietnamese appreciated a phrase always heard in the forums, summarizing the strong solidarity expressed many times by Fidel Castro during the most difficult times in the Vietnamese struggle: "For Vietnam we are ready to shed our own blood."

This victory has grown with the rapid, surprising positioning of Vietnam among Southeast Asian countries, and others around the world, as an emerging economy with impressive social and cultural development, the article noted.

On May 19^th, 2017, Granma also run another article titled “Vietnam has fulfilled Ho Chi Minh’s dream” to mark the late leader’s birthday.

The best homage of the Vietnamese people to President Ho Chi Minh is to have amply fulfilled his dream of building a nation ten times more beautiful, the article said.

“Today, 127 years since the Vietnamese leader’s birth, his nation is characterized by rapid economic growth and a great capacity for transformation, which put it in an advantageous position in the face of 21^st century challenges,” the article said.

The path taken by the country, since the implementation of the Doi Moi (Renewal) policy from 1986, has seen more than 20 million people lifted out of poverty in less than two decades, while primary school attendance has risen to almost 100 percent, and life expectancy up to 70 years.

Over the same period, the country multiplied its GDP per capita five-fold, and persified its export base. However, its vision for the future is much more ambitious as Vietnam’s main goal is to become an industrialized nation before 2035.

“The Vietnamese are proud to have fulfilled the desire of their greatest leader and guide, and now intend to build a country 50 or 100 times more beautiful and prosperous,” the article said./.

VNF/VNA