Fidel Castro

In November 1971, , where Marxist President had been elected as the head of . Castro supported Allende's socialist reforms, but warned him of right-wing elements in Chile's military. In 1973, the military and established a military junta led by . Castro proceeded to Guinea to meet socialist President , praising him as Africa's greatest leader, and there received the . He then went on a seven-week tour visiting leftist allies: Algeria, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union, where he was given further awards. On each trip, he was eager to visit factory and farm workers, publicly praising their governments; privately, he urged the regimes to aid revolutionary movements elsewhere, particularly those fighting the .

In September 1973, he returned to to attend the Fourth Summit of the (NAM). Various NAM members were critical of Castro's attendance, claiming that Cuba was aligned to the and therefore should not be at the conference. At the conference he publicly broke off relations with Israel, citing its government's close relationship with the U.S. and its treatment of Palestinians during the . This earned Castro respect throughout the Arab world, in particular from the Libyan leader , who became a friend and ally. As the broke out in October 1973 between Israel and an Arab coalition led by Egypt and Syria, Cuba sent 4,000 troops to aid Syria. Leaving Algiers, Castro visited Iraq and .

Cuba's economy grew in 1974 as a result of high international sugar prices and new credits with Argentina, Canada, and parts of Western Europe. A number of Latin American states called for Cuba's re-admittance into the (OAS), with the U.S. finally conceding in 1975 on 's advice. Cuba's government underwent a restructuring along Soviet lines, claiming that this would further democratization and decentralize power away from Castro. Officially announcing Cuba's identity as a , the first National Congress of the Cuban Communist Party was held, and a new constitution adopted that abolished the position of President and Prime Minister. Castro remained the dominant figure in governance, taking the presidency of the newly created and , making him both and head of government.

Foreign wars and NAM Presidency: 1975–1979

Castro considered Africa to be "the weakest link in the imperialist chain", and at the request of Angolan President he ordered 230 military advisers into Angola in November 1975 to aid Neto's Marxist in the . When the U.S. and South Africa stepped up their support of the opposition and , Castro ordered a further 18,000 troops to Angola, which played a major role in forcing a South African and UNITA retreat. The decision to intervene in Angola has been a controversial one, all the more so as Castro's critics have charged that it was not his decision at all, contending that the Soviets ordered him to do so. Castro always maintained that he took the decision to launch Operation Carlota himself in response to an appeal from Neto and that the Soviets were in fact opposed to Cuban intervention in Angola, which took place over their opposition.

Traveling to Angola, Castro celebrated with Neto, Sékou Touré and Guinea-Bissaun President , where they agreed to support Mozambique's against in the . In February, Castro visited Algeria and then Libya, where he spent ten days with Gaddafi and oversaw the establishment of the , before attending talks with of . From there he proceeded to Somalia, Tanzania, Mozambique and Angola where he was greeted by crowds as a hero for Cuba's role in opposing apartheid South Africa. Throughout much of Africa he was hailed as a friend to national liberation from foreign dominance. This was followed with visits to East Berlin and Moscow.

There is often talk of human rights, but it is also necessary to talk of the rights of humanity. Why should some people walk barefoot, so that others can travel in luxurious cars? Why should some live for thirty-five years, so that others can live for seventy years? Why should some be miserably poor, so that others can be hugely rich? I speak on behalf of the children in the world who do not have a piece of bread. I speak on the behalf of the sick who have no medicine, of those whose rights to life and human dignity have been denied.

– Fidel Castro's message to the UN General Assembly, 1979

In 1977 the broke out over the disputed region as Somalia invaded Ethiopia; although a former ally of Somali President , Castro had warned him against such action, and Cuba sided with 's Marxist government of Ethiopia. In an desperate attempt to stop the war, Castro had a summit with Barre where he proposed a federation of Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Yemen as an alternative to war. Barre who saw seizing the Ogaden as the first step towards creating a greater Somalia that would unite all of the Somalis into one state rejected the federation offer, and decided upon war. Castro sent troops under the command of General to aid the overwhelmed Ethiopian army. Mengistu's regime was barely hanging on by 1977, having lost one-third of its army in Eritrea at the time of the Somali invasion. The intervention of 17, 000 Cuban troops into the Ogaden was by all accounts decisive in altering a war that Ethiopia was on the brink of losing into a victory.

After forcing back the Somalis, Mengistu then ordered the Ethiopians to suppress the , a measure Castro refused to support. Castro extended support to Latin American revolutionary movements, namely the in its overthrow of the Nicaraguan rightist government of in July 1979. Castro's critics accused the government of wasting Cuban lives in these military endeavors; the anti-Castro has claimed that an estimated 14,000 Cubans were killed in foreign Cuban military actions. The Cuban intervention in Angola was envisioned as a short term commitment, but the Angolan government used the profits from the oil industry to subsidize Cuba's economy, making Cuba as economically dependent upon Angola as Angola was militarily dependent upon Cuba.[270]

In the late 1970s, Cuba's relations with North American states improved during the period when Mexican President , Canadian Prime Minister , and U.S. President in power. Carter continued criticizing Cuba's human rights abuses, but adopted a respectful approach which gained Castro's attention. Considering Carter well-meaning and sincere, Castro freed certain political prisoners and allowed some Cuban exiles to visit relatives on the island, hoping that in turn Carter would abolish the economic embargo and stop CIA support for militant dissidents. Conversely, his relationship with China declined, as he accused 's Chinese government of betraying their revolutionary principles by initiating trade links with the U.S. and . In 1979, the Conference of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) was held in Havana, where Castro was selected as NAM president, a position he held until 1982. In his capacity as both President of the NAM and of Cuba he appeared at the United Nations General Assembly in October 1979 and gave a speech on the disparity between the world's rich and poor. His speech was greeted with much applause from other world leaders, though his standing in NAM was damaged by Cuba's refusal to condemn the .

Reagan and Gorbachev: 1980–1991

By the 1980s, Cuba's economy was again in trouble, following a decline in the market price of sugar and 1979's decimated harvest. For the first time, unemployment became a serious problem in Castro's Cuba, with the government sending unemployed youth to other countries, primarily East Germany, to work there. Desperate for money, Cuba's government secretly sold off paintings from national collections and illicitly traded for U.S. electronic goods through Panama. Increasing numbers of Cubans fled to Florida, but were labelled "scum" and "" by Castro and his CDR supporters. In one incident, 10,000 Cubans stormed the Peruvian Embassy requesting asylum, and so the U.S. agreed that it would accept 3,500 refugees. Castro conceded that those who wanted to leave could do so from Mariel port. Hundreds of boats arrived from the U.S., leading to a mass exodus of 120,000; Castro's government took advantage of the situation by loading criminals, the mentally ill, and suspected homosexuals onto the boats destined for Florida. The event destabilized Carter's administration, and later, in 1980, was elected U.S. president.

Reagan's administration adopted a hard-line approach against Castro, making its desire to overthrow his regime clear. In late 1981, Castro publicly accused the U.S. of biological warfare against Cuba by orchestrating a epidemic. Cuba's economy became even more dependent on Soviet aid, with Soviet subsidies (mainly in the form of supplies of low-cost oil and voluntarily buying Cuban sugar at inflated prices) averaging $4–5 billion a year by the late eighties. Soviet economic assistance had not helped Cuba's long-term growth prospects by promoting diversification or sustainability. Although described as a "relatively highly developed Latin American export economy" in 1959 and the early 1960s, Cuba's basic economic structure changed very little between then and the 1980s. Tobacco products such as cigars and cigarettes were the only manufactured products among Cuba's leading exports, and even these are produced by a pre-industrial process. The Cuban economy remained highly inefficient and over-specialized in a few highly subsidized commodities provided by the Soviet bloc countries.[285]

Although despising Argentina's , Castro supported them in the 1982 against Britain and offered military aid to the Argentinians. Castro supported the leftist that seized power in in 1979, befriending Grenadine President and sending doctors, teachers, and technicians to aid the country's development. When Bishop was executed in a Soviet-backed coup by hard-line Marxist in October 1983, Castro condemned the killing but cautiously retained support for Grenada's government. However, the U.S. used the coup as a basis for . Cuban soldiers died in the conflict, with Castro denouncing the invasion and comparing the U.S. to . In a July 1983 speech marking the 30th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution, Castro condemned Reagan's administration as a "reactionary, extremist clique" who were waging an "openly warmongering and fascist foreign policy". Castro feared a and sent Ochoa to train the governing in guerrilla warfare, but received little support from the USSR.

In 1985, became Secretary-General of the Soviet Communist Party. A reformer, he implemented measures to increase freedom of the press () and economic decentralization () in an attempt to strengthen socialism. Like many orthodox Marxist critics, Castro feared that the reforms would weaken the socialist state and allow capitalist elements to regain control. Gorbachev conceded to U.S. demands to reduce support for Cuba, with Soviet-Cuban relations deteriorating. On medical advice given him in October 1985, Castro gave up regularly smoking , helping to set an example for the rest of the populace. Castro became passionate in his denunciation of the Third World debt problem, arguing that the Third World would never escape the debt that First World banks and governments imposed upon it. In 1985, Havana hosted five international conferences on the world debt problem.

By November 1987, Castro began spending more time on the , in which the Marxists had fallen into retreat. Angolan President successfully appealed for more Cuban troops, with Castro later admitting that he devoted more time to Angola than to the domestic situation, believing that a victory would lead to the collapse of apartheid. In response to the siege of Cuito Cuanavale in 1987-1988 by South African-UNITA forces, Castro sent an additional 12, 000 Cuban Army troops to Angola in late 1987. From afar in Havana, Castro was closely involved in the decision-making about the defense of Cuito Cuanavle and came into conflict with Ochoa, whom he criticized for almost losing Cuito Cuanavle to a South African assault on 13 January 1988 despite warning for almost two months prior that such an attack was coming. On 30 January 1988, Ochoa was summoned to a meeting with Castro in Havana where he was told that Cuito Cuanavale must not fall and to execute Castro's plans for a pull-back to more defensible positions over the objections of the Angolans. The Cuban troops played a decisive role in the relief of Cuito Cuanavale, breaking the siege in March 1988, which led to the withdrawal of most of the South African troops from Angola. Cuban propaganda turned the siege of Cuito Cuanavle into a decisive victory that changed the course of African history and Castro awarded 82 soldiers medals of the newly created Medal of Merit for the Defense of Cuito Cuanavle on 1 April 1988. Tensions were increased with the Cubans advancing close to the border of Namibia, which led to warnings from the South African government that they considered this an extremely unfriendly act, causing South Africa to mobilize and call up its reserves. In the spring of 1988, the intensity of South African-Cuban fighting drastically increased with both sides taking heavy losses.

The prospect of an all-out Cuban-South African war served to concentrate minds in both Moscow and Washington and led to an increased push for a diplomatic solution to the Angolan war. The cost of Cuba's wars in Africa were paid for with Soviet subsidies at a time when the Soviet economy was badly hurt by low oil prices while the white supremacist government of South Africa had by the 1980s became a very awkward American ally as much of the American population, especially black Americans, objected to apartheid. From the viewpoint of both Moscow and Washington, having both Cuba and South Africa disengage in Angola was the best possible outcome. The low oil prices of the 1980s had also changed the Angolan attitude about subsidizing the Cuban economy as dos Santos found the promises made in the 1970s when oil prices were high to be a serious drain upon Angola's economy in the 1980s.[270] South African whites were vastly outnumbered by South African blacks, and accordingly the South African Army could not take heavy losses with its white troops as that would fatally weaken the ability of the South African state to uphold apartheid. The Cubans had also taken heavy losses while the increasing difficult relations with dos Santos who become less generous in subsidizing the Cuban economy suggested that such losses were not worth the cost. Gorbachev called for a negotiated end to the conflict and in 1988 organized a quadripartite talks between the USSR, U.S., Cuba and South Africa; they agreed that all foreign troops would pull out of Angola while South Africa agreed to grant independence to Namibia. Castro was angered by Gorbachev's approach, believing that he was abandoning the plight of the world's poor in favor of détente.

When Gorbachev visited Cuba in April 1989, he informed Castro that perestroika meant an end to subsidies for Cuba. Ignoring calls for liberalization in accordance with the Soviet example, Castro continued to clamp down on internal dissidents and in particular kept tabs on the military, the primary threat to the government. A number of senior military officers, including Ochoa and , were investigated for corruption and complicity in cocaine smuggling, tried, and executed in 1989, despite calls for leniency. In Eastern Europe, socialist governments fell to capitalist reformers between 1989 and 1991 and many Western observers expected the same in Cuba. Increasingly isolated, Cuba improved relations with 's right-wing government in Panama – despite Castro's personal hatred of Noriega – but it was overthrown in a U.S. invasion in December 1989. In February 1990, Castro's allies in Nicaragua, President and the Sandinistas, were defeated by the U.S.-funded in an election. With the collapse of the Soviet bloc, the U.S. secured a majority vote for a resolution condemning Cuba's human rights violations at the in Geneva, Switzerland. Cuba asserted that this was a manifestation of U.S. hegemony, and refused to allow an investigative delegation to enter the country.

Special Period: 1992–2000

With favourable trade from the Soviet bloc ended, Castro publicly declared that Cuba was entering a "". Petrol rations were dramatically reduced, Chinese bicycles were imported to replace cars, and factories performing non-essential tasks were shut down. Oxen began to replace tractors, firewood began being used for cooking and electricity cuts were introduced that lasted 16 hours a day. Castro admitted that Cuba faced the worst situation short of open war, and that the country might have to resort to . By 1992, Cuba's economy had declined by over 40% in under two years, with major food shortages, widespread malnutrition and a lack of basic goods. Castro hoped for a restoration of Marxism–Leninism in the USSR, but refrained from backing the . When Gorbachev regained control, Cuba-Soviet relations deteriorated further and Soviet troops were withdrawn in September 1991. In December, the as abolished the and introducing a capitalist . Yeltsin despised Castro and developed links with the Miami-based . Castro tried improving relations with the capitalist nations. He welcomed Western politicians and investors to Cuba, befriended and took a particular interest in 's policies in the UK, believing that Cuban socialism could learn from her emphasis on low taxation and personal initiative. He ceased support for foreign militants, refrained from praising on a 1994 visit to Colombia and called for a negotiated settlement between the and Mexican government in 1995. Publicly, he presented himself as a moderate on the world stage.

In 1991, Havana the , which involved construction of and accommodation for the athletes; Castro admitted that it was an expensive error, but it was a success for Cuba's government. Crowds regularly shouted "Fidel! Fidel!" in front of foreign journalists, while Cuba became the first Latin American nation to beat the U.S. to the top of the gold-medal table. Support for Castro remained strong, and although there were small anti-government demonstrations, the Cuban opposition rejected the exile community's calls for an armed uprising. In August 1994, Havana witnessed the largest anti-Castro demonstration in Cuban history, as 200 to 300 young men threw stones at police, demanding that they be allowed to emigrate to Miami. A larger pro-Castro crowd confronted them, who were joined by Castro; he informed media that the men were anti-socials misled by the U.S. The protests dispersed with no recorded injuries. Fearing that dissident groups would invade, the government organised the "War of All the People" defense strategy, planning a widespread guerrilla warfare campaign, and the unemployed were given jobs building a network of bunkers and tunnels across the country.

We do not have a smidgen of capitalism or neo-liberalism. We are facing a world completely ruled by neo-liberalism and capitalism. This does not mean that we are going to surrender. It means that we have to adopt to the reality of that world. That is what we are doing, with great equanimity, without giving up our ideals, our goals. I ask you to have trust in what the government and party are doing. They are defending, to the last atom, socialist ideas, principles and goals.

– Fidel Castro explaining the reforms of the Special Period

Castro believed in the need for reform if Cuban socialism was to survive in a world now dominated by capitalist free markets. In October 1991, the Fourth Congress of the Cuban Communist Party was held in Santiago, at which a number of important changes to the government were announced. Castro would step down as head of government, to be replaced by the much younger , although Castro would remain the head of the Communist Party and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. Many older members of government were to be retired and replaced by their younger counterparts. A number of economic changes were proposed, and subsequently put to a national referendum. Free farmers' markets and small-scale private enterprises would be legalized in an attempt to stimulate economic growth, while U.S. dollars were also made legal tender. Certain restrictions on emigration were eased, allowing more discontented Cuban citizens to move to the United States. Further democratization was to be brought in by having the National Assembly's members elected directly by the people, rather than through municipal and provincial assemblies. Castro welcomed debate between proponents and opponents of the , although over time he began to increasingly sympathise with the opponent's positions, arguing that such reforms must be delayed.

Castro's government diversified its economy into and tourism, the latter outstripping Cuba's sugar industry as its primary source of revenue in 1995. The arrival of thousands of Mexican and Spanish tourists led to increasing numbers of Cubans turning to prostitution; officially illegal, Castro refrained from cracking down on , fearing a political backlash. Economic hardship led many Cubans toward religion, both in the form of and . Although long thinking religious belief to be backward, Castro softened his approach to religious institutions and religious people were permitted for the first time to join the Communist Party. Although he viewed the as a reactionary, pro-capitalist institution, Castro organized a visit to Cuba by for January 1998; it strengthened the position of both the Cuban Church and Castro's government.

In the early 1990s Castro embraced environmentalism, campaigning against and the waste of natural resources, and accusing the U.S. of being the world's primary polluter. In 1994 a ministry dedicated to the environment was established, and new laws established in 1997 that promoted awareness of environmental issues throughout Cuba and stressed the sustainable use of natural resources. By 2006, Cuba was the world's only nation which met the 's definition of sustainable development, with an of less than 1.8 hectares per capita and a of over 0.8. movement, criticizing U.S. global hegemony and the control exerted by . Castro maintained his devout beliefs, and at the 26 July celebrations in 1991, he was joined onstage by the South African political activist , recently released from prison. Mandela praised Cuba's involvement in battling South Africa in Angola and thanked Castro personally. He later attended Mandela's inauguration as President of South Africa in 1994. In 2001 he attended the Conference Against Racism in South Africa at which he lectured on the global spread of racial stereotypes through U.S. film.

Pink tide: 2000–2006

Mired in economic problems, Cuba was aided by of socialist and anti-imperialist to the Venezuelan Presidency in 1999. Castro and Chávez developed a close friendship, with the former acting as a mentor and father-figure to the latter, and together they built an alliance that had repercussions throughout Latin America. In 2000, they signed an agreement through which Cuba would send 20,000 medics to Venezuela, in return receiving 53,000 barrels of oil per day at preferential rates; in 2004, this trade was stepped up, with Cuba sending 40,000 medics and Venezuela providing 90,000 barrels a day.

Cuba and Venezuela were the founding members of the (ALBA). ALBA sought to redistribute wealth evenly throughout member countries, to protect the region's agriculture, and to oppose economic liberalization and privatization. ALBA's origins lay in a December 2004 agreement signed between the two countries, and was formalized through a People's Trade Agreement also signed by ' Bolivia in April 2006. Castro had also been calling for greater Caribbean integration since the late 1990s, saying that only strengthened cooperation between Caribbean countries would prevent their domination by rich nations in a global economy. Cuba has opened four additional embassies in the including: , Dominica, , Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. This development makes Cuba the only country to have embassies in all independent countries of the Caribbean Community.[342]

In contrast to the improved relations between Cuba and a number of leftist Latin American states, in 2004 it broke off diplomatic ties with Panama after centrist President pardoned four Cuban exiles accused of attempting to assassinate Castro in 2000. Diplomatic ties were reinstalled in 2005 following the election of leftist President .[343]
Castro's improving relations across Latin America were accompanied by continuing animosity towards the U.S. However, after massive damage caused by in 2001, Castro successfully proposed a one-time cash purchase of food from the U.S. while declining its government's offer of humanitarian aid., condemning and offering Cuban airports for the emergency diversion of any U.S. planes. He recognized that the attacks would make U.S. foreign policy more aggressive, which he believed was counter-productive. Castro criticized the , saying that the U.S.-led war had imposed an international "law of the jungle".[346]

Meanwhile, in 1998, Canadian Prime Minister arrived in Cuba to meet Castro and highlight their close ties. He was the first Canadian government leader to visit the island since Pierre Trudeau was in Havana in 1976. of .

Stepping down: 2006–2008

Castro underwent surgery for intestinal bleeding, and on 31 July 2006, duties to Raúl Castro. Later that month, Fidel called into Hugo Chávez's radio show . of the 's ,

Commenting on Castro's recovery, U.S. President said: "One day the good Lord will take Fidel Castro away." Hearing about this, the atheist Castro replied: "Now I understand why I survived Bush's plans and the plans of other presidents who ordered my assassination: the good Lord protected me." The quote was picked up on by the world's media.[356]

In a February 2008 letter, Castro announced that he would not accept the positions of President of the Council of State and Commander in Chief at that month's National Assembly meetings, On 24 February 2008, the unanimously voted Raúl as president.

Retirement and final years: 2008–2016

Following his retirement, Castro's health deteriorated; international press speculated that he had , but Cuba's government refused to corroborate this. In January 2009 Castro asked Cubans not to worry about his lack of recent news columns and failing health, and not to be disturbed by his future death..[363]

In July 2010, he made his first public appearance since falling ill, greeting science center workers and giving a television interview to in which he discussed U.S. tensions with Iran and North Korea. in four years, urging the U.S. not to take military actions against those nations and warning of a . told the

On 19 April 2011, Castro resigned from the Communist Party central committee,. Raúl was selected as his successor.. In March 2011, Castro condemned the . visited Cuba for three days, during which time he briefly met with Castro despite the Pope's vocal opposition to Cuba's government. Later that year it was revealed that along with Hugo Chávez, Castro had played a significant behind-the-scenes role in orchestrating peace talks between the Colombian government and the far left guerrilla movement to end the conflict which had raged since 1964., he urged both the North Korean and U.S. governments to show restraint. Calling the situation "incredible and absurd", he maintained that war would not benefit either side, and that it represented "one of the gravest risks of nuclear war" since the Cuban missile crisis.[372]

In December 2014, Castro was awarded the Chinese for seeking peaceful solutions to his nation's conflict with the U.S. and for his post-retirement efforts to prevent nuclear war.", an increased normalization between Cuba-U.S. relations, by stating that while it was a positive move for establishing peace in the region, he mistrusted the U.S. government. on the latter's visit to Cuba in March 2016, although sent him a letter stating that Cuba "has no need of gifts from the empire". In September 2016, Castro was visited at his Havana home by the Iranian President ,., who became one of the last foreign leaders to meet him.[379]