The first initial French contact with Cuba was in 1554 when French pirate Jacques de Sores (under the commission of King Francis I of France to raid Spanish ships and territories of gold) raided the Cuban city of Santiago de Cuba.

[2] During the Spanish–American War (April - August 1898), France (along with the United Kingdom and Germany) urged Spain to end the war with the United States and to relinquish its territories of Cuba, the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam.

In 1960, French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre and French writer Simone de Beauvoir paid a visit to Cuba and met with President Fidel Castro and Argentine-born Cuban revolutionary hero, Ernesto "Che" Guevara.

[5] During a world tour in December 1964, Cuban diplomat Che Guevara paid an official visit to France.

[9] In May 2018, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian paid a visit to Cuba.

[12] Cuba's main exports to France include: fish, rum and cigars.