On November 2, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel arrived in Moscow to kick off his first official visit to Russia and Asia since assuming office in April. The Cuban leader's trip placed a high priority on Asia, with visits to four Asian countries, namely, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), China, Viet Nam and Laos, after Russia.

Progress in diplomacy

Cuban diplomacy has made a good deal of progress, including resuming relations with the U.S. in 2015 and successfully mediating in Colombian peace talks between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Cuba has also stressed multi-track diplomacy in light of internal and external changes, which is making a global impression. In the process of reform, Cuba faces many external problems, therefore, it should take the opportunity to adjust traditional diplomatic strategies in order to improve relations with the U.S., Europe, Russia and other regions and countries.

Cuba has a positive interacting relationship between its domestic economic model and the social political change process on the one hand and new demands for comprehensive and pluralistic diplomacy to serve the social economy and development of the country on the other. Since Raúl Castro's administration, Cuba has been updating its diplomatic concepts on the basis of continuing the independent diplomacy established by the older generation of revolutionaries such as Fidel Castro. The development of the national economy and the improvement of people's livelihood have promoted Cuba's international status. Its active, flexible and pragmatic foreign policy has been able to achieve the dual goals of maintaining national independence and protecting national sovereignty. Its medical, religious and cultural diplomacy has become increasingly evident, and its foreign policy adjustment has been fruitful. Cuba has also continued to focus on multilateral organizational activities and participates in regional and United Nations affairs.

However, Cuban diplomacy in transition is still facing many internal and external problems. For instance, its unsatisfactory national economic performance and U.S. President Donald Trump's revisionist policy toward Cuba may be seriously blocking Cuban renewal.

Cuba has long suffered from the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the U.S. After reform, Cuba improved relations with the U.S. in 2014 and the European Union in 2016. But under the Trump administration, the U.S. tightened sanctions against Cuba at the end of 2017. This has had a negative impact on Cuba's engagement in the international community and its internal reform. It is thus necessary for Cuba to diversify its foreign relations around the world more.

Common interests

Cuba has different priorities for bilateral exchange and cooperation with each of the five nations Díaz-Canel visited. As the biggest country in the Caribbean, Cuba has a crucial and traditional impact on the Caribbean region in terms of politics, the economy and culture. Latin American countries have developed in recent decades, but their growth rate and regional integration have not been as dynamic as those in East Asia. In 2017, the Cuban GDP grew 1.6 percent after experiencing negative growth in 2016.

Cuba's new government has put priority on economic development via reform. As socialist countries, China and Viet Nam have achieved sound development after implementing reform and opening-up policies. Thus, the social, political and economic progress made in these countries has relevant references for Cuba, since they have a similar political system.

Cuba is rich in tropical agro products and raw materials, which are part of its national industry structure. With more economic cooperation from these four Asian countries, it can import manufacturing and trading capacity, in particular, along with more capital resources, which may be beneficial for upgrading Cuba's economic industries and structure.

Since establishing diplomatic ties in 1960, China and Cuba have consistently developed mutually beneficial, friendly and cooperative relations, which have grown rapidly and expanded their exchange and cooperation in various fields. Sino-Cuban relations have gone far beyond the traditional trade and investment relationship to a more structural cooperation in the interests of the two countries. Since both China and Cuba are socialist countries carrying out comprehensive reform, they face similar challenges and difficulties during the process. Thus they can learn from each other's experience and share new thinking and theoretical progress.

Bilateral relations have been characterized by frequent exchanges at various levels as China and Cuba support each other in international affairs. For example, at the 68th Session of the UN General Assembly, China voted in favor of Cuba's resolution to end the U.S. blockade imposed on it. Intensive economic cooperation and trade exchanges have laid new ground for future development. China is Cuba's largest trading partner, while Cuba is China's second largest trading partner in the Caribbean. Moreover, China and Cuba have multi-level exchanges and cooperation in culture, education, health and science and technology. Cuba has become a Chinese tourist attraction. With the Belt and Road Initiative, China and Cuba will create a new model for future cooperation with economic structural complementarity in the fields of new energy, infrastructure, information technology and bio-pharmaceuticals.

After joining the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1995, Viet Nam has made great reform achievements, both politically and economically. It is becoming a new star among ASEAN members, reducing the economic gap between itself and other more developed ASEAN members, even overtaking some after being one of the least developed members. Viet Nam has also improved its relations with the West, especially with the U.S., while sustaining good relations with China and Russia. Laos is also a socialist country and joined ASEAN in 1997. It enjoys more stability in its process of political and economic reform in addition to balanced relations with Viet Nam, China, Russia, ASEAN and the West, which has proven very important for its domestic development and international relations.

Cuba's closer relations with Russia can balance the U.S. pressure due to sanctions—which Russia also faces from both the U.S. and Europe—through security and political cooperation. In addition, economic support from Russia, especially energy supply, is crucial for Cuba right now. So the possible close bilateral cooperation between Cuba and Russia may have some implications both nationally and internationally.

Cuba and the DPRK are willing to carry out domestic reform to improve their national economies, but are facing U.S. political barriers. How to break the U.S.-imposed political and economic isolation to start reform is the common problem the two countries have to tackle first. Their exchange and cooperation are useful for their relations with the U.S. in the coming days.

Díaz-Canel's state visit to Asia and Russia will impact Cuban foreign policy's readjustment in three ways. First, Cuba will have more of a global reach beyond Latin America and the Caribbean for diversifying its diplomatic balance, especially for dealing with U.S. attempts at isolation. Second, East Asia's regional emergence has provided Cuba a possible path to reform or industrialization, since some socialist countries have successfully used the regional model for their economic development. Third, the fact that all the countries Díaz-Canel visited have a socialist background may be evidence of Cuba's desire for more exchange and cooperation in the process of further engaging in the global economy. It is also an opportunity to learn from reform in the Asian countries.

The author is a researcher on Cuban studies at the Institute of Latin American Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Copyedited by Rebeca Toledo

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