HAVANA -- Visiting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Monday reaffirmed strong ties with Cuba during talks with Cuban leader Raul Castro, the state-run Granma daily said.

Maduro travelled to Havana to celebrate the 19th anniversary of former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's first visit to Cuba and his historic meeting with retired Cuban leader Fidel Castro in 1994, it said. Maduro met Fidel Saturday.

Chavez died of cancer on March 5. During a two-year battle with cancer, he had undergone four operations in Cuba and spent months receiving treatment on the island.