Havana, April 15 (RHC) – Spain wants to be in the "forefront" of the economic changes that Cuba will experience in the coming years, the Spanish secretary of state for trade told EFE news agency of Tuesday.

Heading a delegation with representatives from 45 companies, Jaime Garcia-Legaz emphasized the "special" moment provided by the rapprochement between Havana and Washington, a situation he says will bring "very important changes ... in the island's economy."

Cuba is also promoting foreign investment, amid new economic reforms to update its socialist model. Garcia-Legaz emphasized that the situation demands that Spain's trade policy "be up to the circumstances."

The Spanish secretary of state for trade was dispatched to Cuba with a large business delegation accompanied by the vice president of Spain's CEOE employers association, Joaquim Gay, and the vice president of the Chamber of Commerce, Modesto Piñeiro.

The delegation on Tuesday participated in a forum with Cuban businesses at which the Spanish business executives expressed their interest in participating in the telecommunications, transportation, construction and infrastructure sectors.

Spain is Cuba's third-largest trade partner and has more than 200 companies doing business on the island.