Castro Ill, relinquishing power
For nearly half a century, the CIA and Cuban exiles in Miami have been trying to assassinate Fidel Castro but have never been able to remove him. Today came the news that the world’s longest-serving leader was, at least temporarily, relinquishing power to his brother, Raul, because of ill-health caused by an “intestinal crisis” necessitating an operation.
He may recover fully and resume power, and certainly even if he doesn’t there is little sign that a dramatic change in Cuba is about to happen. However, Castro will probably not remain in power for many more years in any event, and when a permanent transition occurs there will be an opportunity to re-evaluate the U.S.-Cuba relationship.
I don’t have any fondness for Castro’s regime. He is a thug and an absolute dictator and a there is no reason to gloss over that. I don’t think though that our economic sanctions of Cuba have been wise or even useful. Perhaps during the Cold War it was justified, but since then at least I think we would have benefited more, and Cuba would have moved closer to freedom, if we had dropped those sanctions.
Cuban economic development is in our interest, even if it remains a thug regime. When Castro eventually departs the stage for good, I hope that we will change our policies. Until then, political pressures make it extremely unlikely that such a thing will happen.
