TEHRAN – Minister of Science, Research, and Technology, Hossein Simaei-Sarraf, and Cuban Minister of Higher Education, Walter Baluja García, have underlined the need to expand academic and educational relations.

The Cuban official is paying a visit to the country as a member of a delegation that is attending the funeral ceremony of the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. 

Lauding Iran’s scientific and technological achievements despite sanctions, Baluja Garcia stressed the significance of enhancing research and academic cooperation between the two countries.

The official highlighted the common external pressures, threats, and sanctions faced by the two nations, noting that Iran and Cuba can benefit from each other’s capacities to foster scientific collaborations.

For his part, Simaei-Sarraf underlined that by promoting the economic resistance theory, the martyred leader managed to neutralize sanctions and steered the nation through difficulties. He expressed hope that the Cuban nation would succeed in resisting and overcoming the US pressures and policies like the Iranian nation.

In May 2025, Cuban Ambassador to Tehran, Jorge Fernando Nicolás, in a meeting with Alireza Biglari, the Iranian deputy health minister for international affairs, discussed ways to follow up on joint projects, especially in biotechnology and vaccine production projects.

Referring to the successful experience of cooperation between Iran and Cuba, Biglari termed these relations as a successful model in international scientific interactions.

MT/MG