The Cuban Military and the Future of Post-Castro Cuba

Raul Castro has been the head of MINFAR, the Cuban military agency, since 1959. Until the early 1970s MINFAR controlled the MINIT, Ministry of Interior, but then it was removed from under the MINFAR, unless in time of war. The Cuban military has been a key to Castro being able to maintain his absolute dictatorship. Today the Cuban military is wealthy since the military actually owns large numbers of successful businesses. For decades thousands of Cuban military have been active in various Latin American nations, Africa, Middle East, Vietnam, etc. During the Vietnam War Cubans had brutal interrogators at the CuLoc North Vietnamese US POW prison camp. Also, there were Cuban combat soldiers and propaganda advisors in Vietnam. The Cuban military is especially active now in Venezuela. Over the decades they have trained numerous foreign hard core terrorists and military specialists. They specialize in low intensive warfare, disinformation, cyber war, terrorist activities, and intelligence operations.

There is a new critical military issue which could develop in the near future. Fidel Castro has a pathological hatred of the United States, hatred which he has nurtured for 50 to 60 years. For decades Castro has had the closest contact with all international terrorist groups. The Fidel Castro ultimate military goal is for Cuba to obtain nuclear weapons. In the early 1960s he sent his only legitimate son Fidelito to Moscow to become a nuclear engineer. Fidel’s’ protégé Chavez in Venezuela has the same intense hatred for the United States.

As part of his massive military build up, Chavez also probably wants to become a nuclear power. It is certain that Fidel, Raul, Fidelito and Chavez collectively do not have one “Atom for Peace” in their bodies. Numerous reliable sources report that Iran is close to developing nuclear weapons. There have been numerous personal visits to Cuba and Venezuela by Ahmadinejad and his advisors. When, not if, Iran develops a nuclear weapon, it is highly consistent with Castro and Chavez previous goals to ask for nuclear weapons.

When the USSR in October, 1962, introduced nuclear weapons in Cuba, even with Soviets not Cubans controlling the nuclear weapons launch buttons, the Soviet action almost created a world nuclear war. Cuba with nuclear weapons is chilling to say the least. It is impossible to place a probability on how Fidel Castro will react to an Iranian offer to provide nuclear weapons. At this point hopefully it is only a highly unlikely possible event. We must never forget Fidel Castro, the communist decision maker, has a life long pathological hatred of the United States. Castro has always wanted to possess nuclear weapons.

A post Castro Cuba will still have a 50 year old military with vast foreign experience. The military will play a key role in a transition in Cuba, positive or negative, especially the military intelligence and the military which has served overseas.