HAVANA -- With U.S. efforts to isolate Cuba flouted by its friends and foes alike, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien arrived in Havana on Sunday to build on his nation's growing ties with the Communist-ruled island.

Chretien is one of the most important Western leaders to visit Cuba in years. His trip comes amid a string of victories in Cuba's efforts to break out of a U.S.-backed diplomatic isolation.

Canada, like many European and Latin American nations, favors a path of ``constructive engagement,'' arguing that persuasion will be more effective in bringing change in Cuba.

``Of course we will raise the question of human rights and political rights,'' Chretien said before departing, according to the Canadian Press.

``Isolation leads nowhere. But if we are engaging them, discussing with them, offering help . . . the people of Cuba and the president of Cuba will certainly be happy to have a dialogue.''

U.S. officials disagree. But Canadian leaders insist the visit will have little impact on relations with the United States.

``They understand that we have a different position,'' Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy said last week.

Chretien's arrival site was a symbol of Canada's growing role in Cuba: a Canadian-financed terminal at Havana's Jose Marti International Airport.

Canada rivals Italy as the largest supplier of foreign tourists to Cuba's famed beaches.

Its Sherritt International is the most prominent foreign company active in Cuba, with stakes in nickel mining, farming, cellular telephones and tourism. The company's executives have been banned from the United States in retaliation for use of mineral mines expropriated from U.S. companies after Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution.

Cuba has long been one of the most visible points of difference between Canada and the United States.

In 1976, then-Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau visited Cuba and infuriated anti-communists with a cry of ``Viva Castro.''

Canada and Mexico -- the two U.S. partners in the North American Free Trade Area -- are the only countries in the Americas that never broke relations with Cuba.

Several Latin American and Caribbean countries have reestablished ties with Havana since the end of the Cold War and the disappearance of Cuban-backed efforts to foment revolution abroad.

The Dominican Republic renewed full diplomatic relations this month. The foreign ministers of Mexico and Brazil plan to visit soon. Several countries are pressing for Cuba's readmission to the Organization of American States.