Cuba says in advanced talks with China's Huawei over telecoms

[Riviera Maya, MEXICO] Cuba is in advanced talks with Chinese telecoms equipment company Huawei to do more business on the Communist island, Cuban finance minister Lina Pedraza said on Friday. "A lot of companies are in negotiations. Just yesterday I was with a businessman who is operating with us and he spoke with us for a long time. He's Chinese by the way,"

Ms Pedraza said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on Mexico's Caribbean coast. "He is very advanced in negotiations with a Cuban company," Ms Pedraza added.

Asked if the Chinese businessman worked for Huawei, which already operates in Cuba, Ms Pedraza said: "Yes." A spokesman for Huawei did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment.

Ms Pedraza added that the Cuban telecoms sector would be open to all foreign companies but also noted that the country wanted to avoid the "negative parts of the internet".

REUTERS