Raúl Castro set to visit US, address UN this month

Raúl Castro is visiting America this month for the first time as Cuba’s head of state, according to a Tuesday report.

Reuters reports that Castro is traveling to New York City on Sept. 28 for the United Nation’s annual summit of world leaders, where he will address the General Debate.

{mosads}President Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani are also reportedly participating in the same event, it added.

The debate is part of the U.N.’s 2016 General Assembly, beginning on Sept. 25 with a speech by Pope Francis to kick off a three-day focus on global development, and running through Oct. 3.

Obama is set to address the development summit the day before Castro, according to Reuters.

Neither Washington nor Havana offered additional comment on whether Obama plans on meeting with Castro during the conference.

The Obama administration restored diplomatic relations with Cuba in July after more than half a century of tension between the two countries. The U.S. has repeatedly butted heads with its Communist neighbor over issues including economics, foreign policy, immigration and trade.

Obama first announced a thaw in diplomatic relations with Raúl Castro’s government late last year.

Reuters said on Tuesday that Raúl Castro briefly visited Houston as a civilian in 1959 before his brother, Fidel Castro, took power in the Cuban Revolution. It added that Fidel Castro owns the record for the longest U.N. General Assembly remarks, clocking in with a four-hour address in 1960.