(MENAFN- Jordan News Agency) Francois Hollande arrived in Cuba Sunday evening as the first French president to visit Cuba in more than a century.
Hollande has become the first Western leader to visit the island nation since a surprise announcement in December by Cuba and the United State that the former Cold War foes would move to normalize relations.
"I come to Cuba with great emotion, because it is the first time that a president of the French Republic has come to Cuba," he said upon arrival.
"There are historic ties, deep ties, between the people of France and the people of Cuba," noted Hollande, applauding Cuba's long-time commitment to independence.
France is seeking to "be the first among European nations, and the first among Western nations, to be able to say to the Cubans that we will be at their side if they decide themselves to take needed steps toward opening up," Hollande told reporters before arriving in Havana.
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