Top Chinese legislator Wu Bangguo will begin on Tuesday an official visit to Cuba, to further promote the growing exchanges between the two countries.

Wu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), the legislature of China, is leading a delegation to Havana, the first stop of his 12-day tour, which also includes Bahamas and the United States.

Wu was invited to Cuba by Ricardo Alarcon, president of the National Assembly of the People's Power of Cuba.

This will be the first visit of a high-level Chinese legislative delegation to Cuba after the one made in January 2007 by then NPC Standing Committee Vice Chairman Cheng Siwei.

The relations between Cuba and China are in their best historical moment since the establishment of diplomatic ties 49 years ago. Frequent reciprocal visits by high-level leaders from the two countries have strengthened understanding and trust between both sides.

Cuba is the first Latin American country to have set up diplomatic ties with China. The two countries established diplomatic relations on Sept. 28, 1960.

Currently, the Havana-Beijing ties are characterized by mutual understanding and support on politics and growing cooperation in economy, trade and culture, as well as close consultations on international affairs.

Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Cuba in 2004 and 2008, when the two sides signed important commercial-trade agreements.

Thanks to expanded collaboration in various fields, China has become Cuba's second largest trading partner with the bilateral trade volume rising to over 2.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2008 from 800 million dollars in 2004.

China is Cuba's largest suppliers of capital goods and consumption commodities, and Cuba exports medicines, tobacco and seafood to China.

When China's Sichuan province was devastated by a deadly earthquake in May 2008, Cuba was one of the first countries to have provided aid and sent a medical team.

(Xinhua News Agency September 1, 2009)