Manmohan Singh meets Fidel Castro

HAVANA: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had a rare privilege of meeting ailing Cuban President Fidel Castro, one of the towering personalities of the Non-Aligned Movement, here and discussed the situation in both the countries in the context of the current global scenario.

The 80-year old leader, who is recuperating after a major intestinal surgery recently, met Singh at the office of the Cuban Communist Party in “Plaze de revolucion” in the heart of the city and spoke nostalgically about his association with the late Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.

During the 40-minute meeting touching close to midnight last night, the Cuban leader enquired about the situation in India, especially the energy security.

He evinced interest in the alternative sources of energy like the non-conventional form of energy and spoke of India’s assistance to Cuba in this regard. In the last two days, Castro, who did not attend the NAM summit due to ill health, had received only a few visitors, including UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.

He also enquired about the food situation in the context of the shortage the country had faced decades ago. Prime Minister’s spokesman Sanjaya Baru told reporters that Singh spoke at length about the situation in India.

Castro has been living in one of the rooms of the party office ever since he was operated upon. He told Singh that being a developing country, Cuba may not be economically rich but was rich in human resources. Earlier in the day, Singh met Cuban Acting President Raul Castro and discussed bilateral relations.