Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez on Monday invited King Juan Carlos of Spain to visit the Caribbean island country in the near future, marking a further thaw in the relations between Havana and European countries.

Perez offered the invitation during a meeting with King Juan Carlos, attended also by his Spanish counterpart Miguel A. Moratinos at Moncloa Palace, Madrid.

On another occasion, Perez held talks with Spanish Prime Minister Jose L. Rodriguez Zapatero on bilateral trade and investment by Spain.

The trip by Cuba's top diplomat to Madrid came after his landmark visit to Brussels where Perez and the European Union officials agreed to resume high-level exchanges.

At a proposal by Spain, the EU temporarily suspended sanctions against Cuba two weeks ago, in response to the gesture by Cuba that it would resume official contacts with the EU. The European bloc imposed a freeze on diplomatic ties with Cuba in March 2003 amid hot disputes over the human rights issue.

Source: Xinhua