(VOVworld) – President François Hollande began on Monday an official visit to Cuba, the first-ever visit by a French leader to the Caribbean country.

French President Francois Hollande takes a picture with students in Saint Barthelemy on May 8, 2015, as part of a five-day visit to the Caribbean including Guadeloupe, Martinique, Cuba and Haiti. (Photo: AFP)

Hollande will meet with Cuban President Raul Castro and lay a floral wreath at the memorial of Cuban national hero José Martí.

According to the visit’s agenda announced by the Elysee Palace, Hollande will attend the inauguration ceremony for a new office of the French-speaking alliance, deliver a speech at the University of Havana, and meet Cuban students and faculty.

French media report that Hollande’s visit will strengthen bilateral economic and trade relations, create a momentum for normalizing diplomatic ties between the EU and Cuba, which have been frozen since 1996, and express France’s support for the thawing of the Cuba-US relations.