Photographs show Fidel Castro’s visit to Georgia 53 years ago

After the world learnt that former Cuban leader Fidel Castro had died, Georgian internet users looked back into the past and remembered Castro had once visited Georgia.

Pictures below show Castro and former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev drink Georgian wine from a traditional drinking horn in Abkhazia, a region of Georgia that is now occupied by Russia. The photos below were taken in 1963.

Fidel Castro and Nikita Khruschev in Abkhazia, Georgia in 1963. Photo from www.rarehistoricalphotos.com.

Fidel Castro and Nikita Khruschev in Abkhazia, Georgia in 1963. Photo from www.rarehistoricalphotos.com.

Fidel Castro and Nikita Khruschev in Abkhazia, Georgia in 1963. Photo from www.rarehistoricalphotos.com.

The leader of the Cuban Revolution paid his first visit to the Soviet Union on April 27, 1963. His journey lasted for 40 days, during which he spent several days in Georgia.

Prior to this, in 1961, a delegation of officials, artists and journalists from the Soviet Union visited Cuba. Georgian journalist Lia Mikadze was a member of the delegation. 

Later it was said Castro, who was single at that time, liked Mikadze and asked her to marry him, but she refused. Two years later when Castro visited Georgia, the two reportedly met again in Tbilisi. 

Georgian journalist Lia Mikadze reportedly rejected a proposal from Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Photo source: Georgia's National Library.