Cuban President, US Artists Talk about Building Bridges

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel met with renowned world figures of the arts and culture in the United States, with whom he addressed the importance of building bridges among the peoples in those areas.

The meeting took place on Friday at the historic Dakota Building in New York City, on an invitation by the famous actor Robert De Niro and the producer Jane Rosenthal.

Good neighbors do not build walls, culture should be used to build bridges, said the main character in such films as Godfather II and Raging Bull, when he received Diaz-Canel.

I've been to Cuba twice, the major thing is its people, said the winner of two Oscars, who highlighted the value of culture to promote approaches, because 'it always stays'.

The Cuban president noted that he was very grateful to De Niro, and stated that he came with a message of peace, with the aim of advancing the ties between the two countries.

Diaz-Canel added that the process of rapprochement between the two countries has had a setback, but he assured that they will not stop and repeated the notion of the importance of culture to build ties.

During the meeting, which took place in the building known worldwide as the place where the British musician John Lennon lived and at which he was murdered, Diaz-Canel recalled the strong artistic ties between Cuba and the United States.

He referred to the bonds in jazz, the existence of Cuban painters who are renowned in the US, and the closeness of the famous US writer and Literature Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway with Cuba.

Diaz-Canel also spoke about the successful Festival 'Arts from Cuba: From the Island to the World', which was held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC in May.

When referring to that event, in which more than 400 Cuban artists participated, the head of State highlighted the importance of promoting new actions and cultural meetings that will bring both countries closer.

During the meeting, Diaz-Canel invited the participants to take the best of US culture to Cuba, to show their productions and help to strengthen ties between the two peoples over political and ideological differences.

The president also explained the characteristics of the Cuban artistic education system, which despite deficiencies caused by the blockade that the United States has imposed for more than 55 years, guarantees universal and free access and high quality in training and professional performance by Cuban graduates.

The actress Katie Holmes and Alex and Carol Rosenberg, founders and organizers of the Havana Film Festival in New York, among others, were among those attending the meeting.