HAVANA, Sept 15 (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin made his second visit to Cuba in two months on Monday in what Cuban state-run press said was a one-day trip to evaluate hurricane damage and strengthen commercial ties. Sechin came with representatives from several Russian ministries and large Russian companies who would look at ways they could help Cuba recover from hurricanes Gustav and Ike, said news agency Prensa Latina. The two storms slammed Cuba 10 days apart and did an estimated $11 billion in combined damage to the communist-run island. Sechin visited Cuba in August on a trip that the two old Cold War allies billed as the reactivation of "traditional relations" between the Caribbean island and Russia, which as the then-Soviet Union was Cuba's biggest benefactor before it collapsed in 1991. That visit followed a report out of Russia, later denied by the Russian Defense Ministry, that Cuba might be used as a refueling base for Russia's nuclear-capable bombers. The report stirred memories of the 1962 Cuban missile crisis when the United States and Soviet Union almost went to war over Soviet missile bases on Cuba, which is 90 miles (145 km) from U.S. shores. Russian officials have said they want to renew Cuban ties that went cold when Soviet aid dried up. Russia was the first country to send in aid after Hurricane Gustav struck last month. Prensa Latina said Sechin promised more aid, including equipment for the badly damaged electricity system and food. He also said his delegation would look to boost ties in the shipping, auto and energy industries, the news agency reported. Prensa Latina said Sechin arrived on Monday and would go back to Russia the same day. (Reporting by Jeff Franks; editing by Jim Loney and Mohammad Zargham)
Galveston residents try to return to their houses after Hurricane Ike, as local police stop them, near Galveston, Texas September 15, 2008. Ice, bottled water and other vital supplies poured into ...
