India and Cuba enjoy excellent bilateral relations & ties have been traditionally warm and friendly
Reinforcing its strong friendship with the Caribbean nation, India has sent a consignment of Humanitarian Assistance comprising 90 tonnes of nine Made in India Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) to Cuba. The shipment left Mundra port on Sunday (June 2, 2024), the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said as it announced the development.

These APIs will be used by the Cuban drug manufacturers to produce essential antibiotics in the dosage form of tablets, capsules, syrups and injections, needed for treatment of chronic communicable diseases, the MEA said. "The assistance reaffirms India’s status as the "Pharmacy of the World” and underlines our commitment to historic friendship with Cuba," the MEA added.

It may be recalled that India supplied 524 boxes of life-saving medicines to Cuba during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in November 2020. India also supplied rice under a short-term credit arrangement during 2022-23.

In January 2023, India announced a donation of 12,500 doses of pentavalent vaccine to Cuba. The vaccine provides protection to children from five life-threatening diseases - Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Hepatitis B and Hib.

India and Cuba enjoy excellent bilateral relations; ties have been traditionally warm and friendly. India was among the first countries to recognise the new government after the Cuban revolution in January 1959.

According to the Indian Embassy in Havana, Cuba, development assistance has been a priority area in the bilateral relationship. India has granted disaster relief assistance to Cuba in the wake of the devastation caused by various hurricanes over the years.

This includes aid of USD 2 million after hurricanes Gustave, Ike, and Paloma in 2008; donation of medical supplies worth USD 1 million after the 2016 Hurricane Mathew, which was handed over in January 2018; and aid of USD 150,000 as emergency financial assistance after Hurricane Irma in 2017.

Additionally, India has extended five Lines of Credit to the tune of USD 243 million to the government of Cuba in the agriculture, agro-food, and renewable energy sectors.