On Nov 8, Zhang Jun, China's chief justice and president of the Supreme People's Court (SPC), received a delegation headed by Ruben Remigio Ferro, president of the Supreme People's Court of the Republic of Cuba, at the SPC's headquarters in Beijing.

Zhang Jun, China's chief justice and president of the Supreme People's Court (SPC), receives a delegation headed by Ruben Remigio Ferro, president of the Supreme People's Court of the Republic of Cuba, at the SPC's headquarters in Beijing, on Nov 8, 2023. [Photo/court.gov.cn]

Zhang extended a warm welcome to the delegation on their visit. He said that China and Cuba are good friends who trust each other, good comrades who share the same vision, and good brothers who share weal and woe. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties over 60 years ago, in the face of the changing international situation, China and Cuba have steadfastly deepened their friendship, carried out mutually beneficial cooperation, and become partners in reform and development, setting an example of solidarity and cooperation among socialist countries and of sincere mutual assistance among developing countries, he said. Under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, courts in the two countries have carried out close communication, which saw frequent high level mutual visits and fruitful results, he said, adding that this face-to-face visit is bound to further solidify the friendship between the judicial organs of the two countries.

Zhang briefly introduced China's rule of law development and judicial trial work in recent years, focusing on topics of common interest such as judicial reform and information-based development of courts. According to him, over the past 40 years of reform and opening-up, China's legal system has become more comprehensive, and the number of cases brought to court has also increased.

Chinese courts are striving to resolve disputes at the source, earnestly fulfilling their mediation duties in order to solve disputes at grassroots levels, Zhang said. He raised his hope that the top courts of the two countries will continue to strengthen practical exchanges and expand cooperation, to provide judicial guarantees for deepening bilateral friendly relations and promoting the building of a China-Cuba community with a shared future, and to contribute judicial efforts to the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation and the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Remigio spoke highly of the achievements of judicial cooperation between China and Cuba, stressing that throughout the exchanges between the judicial organs of the two countries, the concept of support and cooperation has always been upheld. Courts in Cuba regard their counterparts in China as objects of mutual learning, he said, sharing his hope that from this visit, they will learn from the experiences of Chinese courts in judicial reform and information-based development, so as to better serve the development of their own country and benefit the people of both countries with high level judicial services.

The delegation also visited the SPC's key laboratory of smart court and the information management center.