MOSCOW, November 22. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Cuban counterpart Miguel Diaz-Canel unveiled a monument to Fidel Castro in Moscow in a ceremony on Tuesday.

Work on the bronze-made three-meter-monument lasted for six months and took place in the Russian capital. Castro is depicted seated on a rock with a stylized map of Cuba inscribed on it. The image is supposed to reflect the heroic path of a person who stood up for the rights and freedoms of the Cuban people according to the Kremlin’s press service fact sheet for the event. The monument was erected on Moscow’s square named in honor of Castro.

Fidel Castro was one of the leaders of Cuba’s revolutionary movement who chaired Cuba’s Council of Ministers from 1959 to 2008. The Cuban politician passed away in 2016.

The initiative to erect a monument to Fidel Castro came from the leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry. The idea was supported by the Russian Military-Historical Society which held a closed artistic contest with 11 works participating.

The Cuban president arrived in Moscow on November 19.