Cuban Ambassador to Algeria Vergara Bueno pays visit to Great Mosque of Algiers (Djamaa El-Djazair)

BY: Hana Saada

ALGIERS-  The Cuban Ambassador to Algeria, Armando Vergara Bueno, paid, on Monday, a visit to the Great Mosque of Algiers (Djamaa El-Djazair) in El Mohammadia.

Muy honrado de visitar la Mezquita de Argel, junto a los Embajadores de México, Brasil, Colombia y Perú. El Rector de la Mezquita, el jeque Mohamed Mamoune El-Kacimi El-Housseini recordó con cariño la visita del presidente cubano al imponente recinto religioso en noviembre 2022. pic.twitter.com/NlyAC8L1kh

— vergarabuenoa (@VergaraBuenoA) May 15, 2023

“It was a great honor to visit the Mosque of Algiers alongside the Ambassadors of Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. During our visit, we had the pleasure of meeting with the Rector of the Mosque, Sheikh Mohamed Mamoune El-Kacimi El-Hassani. He warmly reminisced about the visit of the Cuban president to this magnificent religious complex in November 2022,” tweeted the Cuban Ambassador to Algeria. He shared this sentiment on Twitter, expressing his appreciation for the opportunity to witness the beauty and grandeur of the Mosque of Algiers.

Algerian Foreign Minister Attaf discusses G 77 Summit with Cuban counterpart

On Saturday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad, Mr. Ahmed Attaf, received a phone call from his Cuban counterpart, Mr. Bruno Eduardi Rodriguez Parrila. The two ministers discussed the progress made in implementing decisions and orientations resulting from consultations between President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel during Diaz-Canel’s visit to Algeria last November.

The ministers also exchanged views on upcoming bilateral meetings and the next Summit of the Group of 77 + China. This group, founded in 1964 to promote the collective economic and political interests of its members, will hold its summit in Havana on September 15 and 16.

The Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad released a statement on the call, highlighting the importance of continued collaboration between Algeria and Cuba. As the two countries work towards shared goals, such as economic development and political stability, their partnership remains a vital component of regional and global cooperation.

Highlights of Algerian, Cuban bilateral cooperation

Algeria and Cuba share a longstanding and unique relationship that has spanned many decades. The two nations have collaborated on a range of issues, including trade, culture, politics, and security. Algeria and Cuba are both known for their anti-colonial struggles and their commitment to socialism and anti-imperialism.  Their relationship is based on a shared vision for a more just and equitable world.

Algeria and Cuba are two countries that have played an important role in shaping the geopolitics of the global South. Both countries have been at the forefront of the struggle against imperialism and neocolonialism. Algeria was a pioneer of the Non-Aligned Movement, and Cuba has been a leading voice in the fight against economic exploitation and inequality. The two countries continue to work together to promote the rights and interests of developing countries on the global stage. They are known for their principled stances in favor of just causes, including the Palestinian and Saharawi ones.

Joint efforts in anti-colonial struggles

Algeria and Cuba both experienced the effects of colonization and imperialist dominance. They played crucial roles in the anti-colonial struggles of the 20th century and supported each other’s sovereignty movements. In the 1960s, for example, Cuba provided military and logistical support to Algeria in its fight for independence. This solidarity continued throughout the years, and Cuba was one of the first countries to recognize Algeria after its independence.

To elaborate, Cuba was the only country in the Western Hemisphere to have recognized, in 1961, the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic (GPRA) as the legitimate government of Algeria. In December 1961, the Cuban ship Bahia de Nipe left Havana with numerous weapons to land in Casablanca. From this Moroccan city, they were transported in January 1962 to the FLN camp, near Oujda, near the Algerian border. Back in Havana, the ship Bahia de Nipe anchored with 78 wounded militants and 20 children from the refugee camps, most of them orphans.

Since October 17, 1962, Cuba and Algeria have maintained diplomatic relations. On this date, the then Prime Minister of Algeria, Ahmed Ben Bella, signed a joint declaration with his Cuban counterpart, Fidel Castro Ruz, formally establishing bilateral relations. A year later, in May 1963, Cuba’s first internationalist medical brigade arrived in that African country, an event referred to in history as the beginning of the Revolution’s solidarity cooperation. Thousands of Cuban professionals have served the nation. Since then, both nations have maintained close ties, and their collaboration covers the sectors of health, energy, construction, education, culture, and sports, among others.

We, as Algerians, remember the “Dignity Operation”, with the arrival on October 22, 1963, of the Cuban military contingent that came to support the nascent Algerian Republic against the Moroccan invader, under Fidel Castro’s maxim: “For Algeria, all the help it needs”. The contingent remained until March 1964 and helped to prepare the young People’s National Army, an indestructible bastion of the triumphant Algerian Revolution and worthy heir to the glorious National Liberation Army.

Algerian-Cuban cooperation in the Non-Aligned Movement

Both Algeria and Cuba have been active members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) since its inception in 1961. As members of this movement, they have cooperated in various international forums and worked together to promote the interests of the Global South. They have both fiercely opposed neocolonialism, imperialism, and any form of domination over developing countries.

Trade exchange

Algerian-Cuban economic relations are evaluating at a rapid pace in line with the commitments made by the high authorities of the two countries, following the visit, last November, of Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez to Algiers, and the holding of a business forum in Havana with an Algerian delegation, headed by Health Minister Abdelhak Saihi, devoted to the inking of a range of cooperation agreements, crowning privileged relations, as declared by His Excellency, the Cuban Ambassador in Algiers, Mr. Armando Vergara Bueno who has been deploying tireless efforts, since his arrival in Algiers, to promote historical and economic ties between the two friendly countries, welcoming, on different occasions, the dynamics of relations between Algiers and Havana, and lauding Algeria’ stances in favor of Cuba, which, for more than 60 years, has been facing an arbitrary blockade imposed by the United States of America.

Collaboration in Arts, Education, Health, and Sport

Algeria and Cuba have collaborated in various fields, such as the arts, education, health, and sport. Algerian students have studied in Cuban universities, and Cuban medical professionals are working in Algeria with the aim of boosting Algeria’s health system. Algeria has also hosted several Cuban cultural festivals, and the two countries have exchanged sports delegations. There is potential for increased collaboration in these fields, which will strengthen the cultural ties between the two nations.

Common interests in global politics and International Law

Algeria and Cuba have shared interests in global politics and have been firm supporters of international law and the UN system. They have both condemned the interference of foreign powers in other countries’ domestic affairs and advocated for a more just, equal, and peaceful world order. They have also been involved in various international initiatives, including climate change negotiations and efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Algeria-Cuba relations as a model for Global South Diplomacy

Algeria-Cuba relations can be seen as a model for Global South diplomacy, showcasing the potential for mutual cooperation and solidarity among developing countries. It highlights the importance of respecting each other’ sovereignty and supporting each other’ struggles for independence and self-determination. The relationship between Algeria and Cuba provides a blueprint for other nations in the Global South to follow as they work towards a more just and equitable world.

In conclusion, the privileged relationship between Algeria and Cuba has demonstrated the power of South-South cooperation in achieving common goals. The historical ties and shared vision of these two nations have helped them overcome political and economic challenges and continue to inspire other countries in the Global South. As Algeria and Cuba look towards the future, there is much potential for further cooperation and partnership in the pursuit of peace, prosperity, and social justice for all.

Great Mosque of Algiers… anti extremism’s religious and cultural edifice

Erected in the heart of the capital on the territory of the commune of Mohammadia, the Great Mosque of Algiers is classified as the largest in Africa and the third largest in the world after Masdjid Al-Haram of Mecca and Masdjid Al-Nabawi of Medina.

The mosque is modernist in design, with an Andalusian interior, geometric architecture, and decorations in wood, marble, and alabaster. It features six kilometers of Koranic text in Arabic calligraphy, along with turquoise prayer mats.

This modernist structure extends across 27.75 hectares, with a prayer hall spreading over more than
2 hectares, with a capacity of 120,000 worshipers. This hall is a massive cube with a footprint measuring approx. 145 meters by 145 meters and 22.5 meters high. At its apex, there is a dome that soars to a height of 70 meters and a base of some 50 meters in diameter. All the religious elements, such as the Qibla wall, the Mihrab, and the Minbar, are integrated into a hall of modern aesthetics.

The Mosque boasts the world’s tallest minaret at 267 meters, fitted with elevators, offering panoramic views that overlook the capital and Bay of Algiers with the dimensions of a skyscraper. These features make it unique in the history of Islam. Its floors open out to the plaza, while the elevators, made of semi-transparent ornamental elements (known as “Moucharabieh façade elements”) serving as protection from the sun, take visitors to the upper public floors, which house the Museum of Algerian History. Moving above, you can find two research areas known as the Research Center, which are accessible to accredited scholars only. The top of the tower, for its part, is open to the public.

Cultural and educational buildings, such as; a house for the Qur’an with a capacity of 300 seats for post-graduation pedagogy, an Islamic cultural center built on an area of 8,000 square meters, with a capacity of 3,000 people, a library with a capacity of more than 2.000 seats hosting a million books, a lecture hall, a museum of Islamic art and history, a center for research on the history of Algeria, a media library, a video library, a film library, two amphitheatres, projection spaces, art workshops, a computer center and the Imam School with apartments for doctoral students are a fundamental part of the Mosque complex, making this edifice not only the center of religious matters, but also the center of events and social and cultural life.

The mosque also contains an outdoor sprawling square with a courtyard that mediates between the prayer hall and the adjoining esplanade in the west. There are administrative headquarters, a car park with a capacity of up to 6,000 cars on two levels underground, green spaces, and shops, not to mention 12 independent buildings located on an area of about one hectare. The mosque has a highly effective anti-seismic system capable of absorbing more than 70% of the earthquake’s force.