Havana - Vietnamese political leader Nguyen Duc Loi highlighted today in this capital the legacy of social justice and solidarity represented by the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro.

Fidel became a symbol of revolutionary heroism, of rebellious ideas and of aspirations for freedom and happiness, said the member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party during a plenary session dedicated to the leader's thoughts on the last day of the 24th Meeting of the Sao Paulo Forum.

At the Convention Center, the also executive director of the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) said that humanitarian internationalism, created and led by Fidel, has supported many revolutions and national liberation movements around the world, including the Vietnamese people's struggle against the U.S. invasion.

In this regard, he assured that for many years Cuba and Fidel Castro have constituted sacred words in the heart of every inhabitant of the Asian nation.

Cuba was the first country to recognize the National Front for the Liberation of the South of Vietnam (December 1961), the first to form the Committee for Solidarity with Vietnam (September 1963) and the first and only one to establish its embassy in the liberated zone (July 1967), a territory visited by Fidel in September 1973, he added.

In his speech, Loi thanked Fidel Castro for his friendship and affection for Vietnam, and reiterated Hanoi's firm solidarity with the island, the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Raul Castro, and the president, Miguel Diaz-Canel.

He also congratulated the Mexican left on the electoral triumph of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, and expressed his support for Venezuela and Nicaragua, as well as his recognition of the development achievements in El Salvador and Bolivia, thanks to the leftist governments.

Former leaders, personalities and progressive and left-wing leaders from Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and Africa participated in the plenary to honor Fidel Castro, a session of the Forum in which they highlighted his legacy and his drive for unity and integration.