Said and Fidel meet in Havana

While summit meetings are great media events their lengthy lists of resolutions are usually forgotten long before the words fade from the fax paper. But the real work of such gatherings, like the one now taking place in Havana, is the time spent by world leaders meeting one on one. Today Belizean Prime Minister Said Musa used his time wisely to work the high level crowd for support in our dispute with Guatemala. Among those he met with were the leaders of Malaysia and Angola who expressed their solidarity with Belize’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. In a meeting with India’s Minister of Development the P.M. secured similarly unconditional support as well as a pledge to assist Belize in developing its cashew industry. India is the world’s largest producer of that highly valued delicacy. And of course no visit to Cuba would be complete without a sit-down with Fidel. The two leaders met Thursday night to discuss the progress of bilateral relations. As a token of appreciation for Cuba’s help in education, housing and health Prime Minster Musa offered ten scholarships for Cuban professionals to study English at UCB’s Regional Language Centre. The Cuban president responded in kind by extending an undetermined number of new scholarships for Belizean undergrads to study in Cuba. He also signaled his acceptance of an invitation to visit Belize in the near future. All that’s missing is the date.