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Cuba, 10/1/2006
Overview:
Less than 100 miles from the United States, Cuba remains a mystery to many in the U.S. Join Active Minds for a past, present and future look at our communist neighbor to the south. We will cover Castro’s revolution, the Bay of Pigs, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Guantánamo Bay and ongoing property disputes. We will also take a look at what the future holds for Cuba after Fidel and Raúl Castro.
Key Lecture Points:
• In July 2006, for the first time in 47 years, Cuban President Fidel Castro relinquished power. Fidel Castro was replaced temporarily by his brother Raul Castro, while he underwent gastrointestinal surgery. Since this time, there has been much speculation about the political fate of Cuba. Rumors have circulated about Castro’s health and whether or not he will continue on for much longer as Cuba’s leader.
• US officials have suggested that Fidel Castro’s days may be numbered as President. They suggest that the “temporary” placement of Raul as head of state is designed to test the Cuban people’s reaction to him as their leader. Raul Castro has been quite wary of official US comments and actions since Fidel’s hospitalization, with one NY Times article from mid-August suggesting that Cuba was mobilizing to defend against a US invasion. Raul stated: “We could not rule out the risk of somebody going crazy, or even crazier, within the U.S. government… So far the attacks have only been rhetorical, with the exception of the substantial increase in subversive radio and television broadcasts against Cuba.” President Bush has denied that the US is preparing to invade Cuba to force regime change. He has stated that the US is pushing for the establishment of a multiparty democracy there. The recent formation of the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba testifies to this.
• Cuba was settled by the Spanish Empire in the early 1500s, and the Spanish ruled until 1898. US interest and involvement in Cuba dates back to the early 19th century, when pro-slavery groups in the US saw the annexation of Cuba as a way to increase their political power. President Polk offered Spain $100 million in 1848 for Cuba, but Spain declined. The US intervened in the Cuban war for independence in 1898, after the USS Maine mysteriously exploded in Havana Harbor. The resulting Spanish-American War ended with the Treaty of Paris in which Spain committed to withdrawing from Cuba and the US established a “trusteeship over the territory. US rule in Cuba lasted until 1902 when the US permitted the establishment of the Republic of Cuba while reserving the right to intervene in the name of US interests. After this time, and indeed up until the time of the Cuban Revolution, US influence in Cuba remained quite strong, especially in diplomatic and financial matters.
• US-Cuban relations have been strained since the 1959 Cuban Revolution which ousted the US-friendly Batista government, replacing it with a communist government led by Fidel Castro. Cuba’s alliance with the USSR during the Cold War meant that relations between the US and Cuba were quite hostile, with the Bay of Pigs Affair and the Cuban Missile Crisis providing good examples of this point.
• Since the fall of the Soviet Union, relations between the US and Cuba have remained tense, despite a softening of relations between Cuba, other Latin American governments and Europe. The US still maintains trade and travel embargoes against Cuba.
More to Explore:
• Historical information on Cuba: www.state.gov
• On the current situation: http://news.bbc.co.uk
Books For Further Reading:
• Kennedy, Robert F. Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis. W.W. Norton and Co, 1999. 185 pages. This is a first-hand, behind-the-scenes recounting of the Cuban Missile Crisis, told by President Kennedy’s brother and advisor, the late Senator Robert Kennedy. Click here to order.
• Staten, Clifford L. The History of Cuba. Palgrave Macmillan, 2005. 176 pages. The author is a professor of political science at Indiana University and a noted authority on Cuba. The history begins before the colonial era and gives special emphasis to the 20th century. Click here to order.
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