The Sinn FΘin president, Mr Gerry Adams, has defended a planned meeting with the Cuban leader, Mr Fidel Castro, during his four-day visit to the Caribbean island this week.
There has been criticism of the trip in the United States, notably by a Republican Congressman, Mr Peter King, who last week described it as a "mistake".
Mr Adams, accompanied by a senior Sinn FΘin MLA Mr Gerry Kelly, left for Cuba yesterday. The Sinn FΘin delegation is to unveil a monument in Havana commemorating the 1981 hunger strike.
The Sinn FΘin president said he wanted to acknowledge President Castro's support of the hunger strike. His engagement in Cuba was a long-standing one which should not cause any unease either at home or in the US, he added.
"This is the 20th anniversary of the hunger strike and there has been a year of commemoration, debate and discussion in Ireland and around the world. Internationally, memorials were unveiled by me in South Africa and by Martin McGuinness in Australia.
"At the time of the hunger strikes, President Castro spoke out in support of the Irish struggle", Mr Adams said.
While he was hopeful that many Sinn FΘin supporters in the US would "understand and accept" his reasons for visiting Cuba, opponents of his party would undoubtedly "try to grab headlines and whip up media controversy" about the trip, he added.
The controversy surrounding Mr Adams's visit is partly due to the fact that five months ago the party's representative in Cuba, Mr Niall Connolly, was among three Irish republicans arrested in Colombia for allegedly training left-wing FARC paramilitaries.
During his trip, Mr Adams is also scheduled to visit the Juan Marquez Hospital and the Latin American School of Medical Sciences.