President of Guinea Bissau arrives in Cuba for official visit

The visitor was welcomed at the Jose Marti International Airport by the island’s Higher Education Minister Juan Vela Valdes.

Vieira is heading a delegation that also includes the Guinean Minister of Foreign Business, International Cooperation and Communities, Maria da Conceicao Nobre Cabral, and other high-ranking officials.

"We hope to strengthen our friendship and cooperation ties," told reporters the African leader upon his arrival. "The Cuban people will always have the support of the people of Guinea Bissau," he added.

During his visit, Vieira will hold official talks with Raul Castro and other government authorities. On Monday he is scheduled to lay a floral wreath at the Mausoleum dedicated to Cuban National Hero Jose Marti in Havana.

Guinea Bissau is one of the smallest African continental countries. It has borders with Senegal to the North, with Guinea to the South and the East and with the Atlantic Ocean to the West.

It has more than 36,000 square kilometers of extension and more than 1,400,000 inhabitants.