Cuban Ambassador to China Carlos Miguel Pereira Photo: Courtesy of Cuban Embassy in Beijing

"China can change a person's sense of time and teach them to travel into the future, and then come back to tell their experiences. China has shown us how to make changes step by step instead of just talking big," exclaimed Cuban Ambassador to China Carlos Miguel Pereira during his farewell ceremony on Monday while reflecting on the impressions China has left on him over the years.

"No other country has such tremendous international influence as China," he said.

Pereira served as the Cuban Ambassador to China from 2006 to 2011 and from 2019 to 2023. He also worked at the Cuban Embassy in China in the early 1990s.

The Global Times learned that the Cuban diplomat will leave China on June 26, and the new Cuban Ambassador to China is expected to take office before October this year.

"Today, it has been 32 years since my first visit to China in 1991. The reforms of the early 1990s were of decisive significance for China's eventual emergence as the world's most dynamic economy. Later, I returned in late 2006 when China was transitioning from the 'shallow waters' of reform to the more profound and thorough 'deep waters' of reform," Pereira reflected in his farewell speech on Monday. He also expressed his awe at China's remarkable development.

He stressed that friendship and cooperation with China is of utmost importance for Cuba.

Pereira said that during his time in China, he always maintained an open-minded and curious attitude to experience the changes in China, and China never failed to pleasantly surprise him with even more experiences and knowledge that Cuba could deeply explore and take reference from.

"China still maintains a unique combination of tradition, modernity, and innovation," Pereira noted. "This is far from the biased narratives constantly propagated by the mainstream Western media. Without understanding China's history, its unique national conditions, and its distinctive ways of thinking and acting, it is difficult for the West to truly comprehend China. I can say without exaggeration that no other country has such enormous international influence as China."

The Cuban diplomat also noted that for China, the importance of continuing to deepen reform and development of its socio-economic model is evident.

"For Cuba, China's political, economic, and social development is of utmost importance. This is not only because we have close political and economic ties, but more importantly, we share common socialist ideals, albeit with different characteristics in our respective socialist models. But we are both committed to seeking a better and more just society," he said.

He also emphasized that cooperation with China has strengthened Cuba's ability to withstand the blockade and economic warfare imposed by the US for over five decades, paving the way for Cuba's recovery and development.

Dozens of guests including Chinese diplomats and ambassadors from other countries including the Russian Ambassador to China Igor Morgulov participated in Pereira's farewell party on Monday.