Cuba - After Castro?
| Date | Friday, September 29, 2006 |
Dr. Julia Sweig, Senior Fellow, Council of Foreign Relations, discusses the current situation in Cuba and the prospects for the country post Castro. After undergoing surgery for a serious, yet undisclosed medical condition, Fidel Castro temporarily handed power over to his brother Raul. All signs suggest that after five decades, Castro's tenure in power may finally be coming to a close, in slow-motion, with Castro himself managing the transfer of power, in effect with a seat at his own funeral. Dozens of scenarios since the collapse of the socialist bloc have attempted to predict what might happen after Fidel, but few asked the question, what happens in Cuba if the post-Castro environment is not really post-Castro at all? How might the United States prepare not for an abrupt transition, but for the perpetuation of a Castro-style regime, whether under his brother Raul or their numerous potential successors? What is the likelihood that economic or political reforms will be enacted under a new government? What role could the United States play in the future of Cuban politics?