Raul Castro turned 93-years-old TODAY!!

 

Today is June 3rd in 2024 and it is Raul Castro's 93rd Birthday!!

For being 93 years old, Raul Castro is healthy.

     On his 93rd birthday today, in Cuba Raul Castro is being celebrated as the second most important person from the Cuban Revoloution that shocked the world on January 1st of 1959 by overthrowing the Batista dictatorsship in Cuba. Above Raul Castro is shown with famed fellow rebel stragegist and guerrilla fighter Vilva Espin. Certainly two of the Top Five figures in both the Revolution and in Revolutionary Cuba, Raul and Vilma got married in January of 1959 right after they had helped win the Revolution. Vilma, who died at age 77 on June 18th in 2007, had two famous children with Raul named Mariela and Alejandro.

    These were the three Castro brothers that were born to Angel Castro and Lina Ruz in Biran, Cuba, which was near where the Cuban Revolution started in 1953 in southeastern Cuba when two of the Castro brothers -- Fidel and Raul -- launched an ill-advised attack on Batista's Moncado Army Barracks in Santiago de Cuba on July 26th of 1953. It was easily repelled and ended up with the two Castro brothers sent to a Batista prison from July of 1953 till May of 1955. The photo above shows Ramon Castro who was born on October 14, 1994 and died at age 91 on February 23, 2018. Ramon became a cattleman, not a rebel. In the middle above is Raul Castro who was born on June 3, 1931 and today on June 3rd of 2024 is celebrating his 93th Birthday. And on the right is Fidel Castro who was born on August 13, 1936 and died on November 25, 2016 at age 90. So all three Castro brothers lived into their 90s but Raul was the only one who lived to be 93 years old.

     From January 1st of 1959 till June 3rd of 2024 either the late Fidel Castro or the still-living Raul Castro have been the only top leaders of Cuba. That is true although since 2018 Miguel Diaz-Canel has held the title of President on the island. But as long as Raul is still alive, the Top Leader of Cuba will be a Castro.

     As shown above, in 2024 Cuba is celebrating the 95TH ANNIVERSARY that the Cuban Revolution has ruled Cuba, which is an astounding tribute to the two Castro brothers and, let it be known, that one of them, Raul, has been alive for all those 65 years.

      Of course, a few days before Fidel Castro died in 2016 at age 90 his brother Raul Castro was holding his beloved brother's hand.

      And, of course, it was Raul Castro who in 2016 placed Fidel Castro's ashes into the huge rock where they are now enshrined in Santiago de Cuba.

     In the 65 years since the Cuban Revolution defeated the western world's beloved but vile Batista dictatorship, the Castro brothers Fidel and Raul have been reviled for their deeds, with the ultra-powerful U. S. news media daily reporting the U. S. summations about how terrible the Castro brothers and their revolution was and is!! Of course, finding a truthful and unbiased U. S. history of the Cuban Revolution...and of the Castro brothers as well as of Batista...is extremely difficult to find. But, shown above, are three sort of unbiased and truthful paragraphs from the Associated Press, the top U. S. News Agency.

But history still says there was a Batista.

And history still says there was a Cuban Revolution.

And history still says there were Fidel and Raul.

*&************************&*

US & Mexico Promise To Help Staving Cubans!!

      Today is MAY 29th in 2024 and for many months it has been well known that "Cuba is in a Crisis" with the island's 11 million people facing food shortages, medical deprivations, and power blackouts...drastically highlighting unprecedented economic problems.

       Cuba blames its dire problems on the six-decade-old U. S. EMBARGO that has existed since 1962 and has been recently more severely tightened by both the Trump and Biden administrations. The United States, of course, says the island itself is responsible for its problems. 

     Above are the TOP Cuba Headlines flashing around the world today on MAY 29th in 2024 and, as you can see, it appears that the United States is finally trying to ease some burdens for Cuban citizens. However, skeptics realize that the glaring headlines shown above may be without meaning but, meanwhile, everyday Cubans have no choice except to try to be hopeful.

     But the headline above on MAY 29th in 2024 is a glimmer of news that Cubans put the most stock in...because the London-based Reuters News Agency is the news source that Cubans trust for being both unbiased and truthful. So, "...oil shipments to Cuba from Mexico..." might help.

*************************

 

cubaninsider: America and Latin America {Re-posted from June 27,...

cubaninsider: America and Latin America {Re-posted from June 27,...: An Historical and Topical Nexus         The above photo shows President Barack Obama awarding the 2014  Presidential Medal of Freedom ...

Will May-2024 Change US-Cuba Relations Forever?

 

     For many years Alejandro Gil was Cuba's Economic Minister and well-respected on the island and even in Miami. But in the first six months of 2024 -- still trying to recover from the Covid Pandemic and trying to survive the tightened U. S. Blokade that began in 1962 -- Cuba's economy hit new lows that have caused food shortages, blackouts, etc. Now in late May of 2024 the once-powerful Alejandro Gil has been accused on corruption charges, but many Cubans, including longtime supporters of the Revolutionary government, believe Gil is merely being unfairly treated as a scrapegoat for the government's dire economic problems.

     The fall of Alejandro Gil is a reminder that 77-year-old Gladys Maria Bejerano Portela for the past two decades has been Cuba's most powerful judicial expert...JUDGE...when it comes to criminality in Cuba. How she feels about what has happend to Gil might affect Revolutionary Cuba more than what the ultra-powerful Counter Revolutionary U. S. Cubans in Miami and Washington will dish out for the rest of 2024.

    Since 2018 Miguel Diaz-Canel has been Cuba's President and he has been a supporter of Economic Minister Alejandro Gil. Both as Education Minister and now as President, most Cubans like and support Diaz-Canel but now many of these Cubans believe Diaz-Canel has "betrayed" Gil. Therefore the crisis for Diaz-Canel might be more serious for the President than for Gil, the ousted Economic Minister.

     Cuba President Diaz-Canel, it appears, may be making the biggest presidential mistake he has made by allowing former Economic Minister Gil to be used as the scrapegoat for Cuba's dire economic problems. But that will play out in the coming crucial days for Diaz-Canel and Gil.

       It is surprising, as shown above, that Cuba's top judge Gladys Bejerano has spoken so candidly to the international EFE Spanish News Agency about the Alejandro Gil saga that is taking place in Cuba. It is up to the Cuban people to determine what she meant by "betrayal" by Gil or against Gil. Spain's EFE is one of the world's Top Four news agencies along with the Associated Press, Reuters, and Agence France-Presse.

Above is the start of the EFE article with Gladys Bejerano.

And above is Gladys Bejerano's 1 minute & 47 seconds comment.

     Meanwhile...in late MAY of 2024 the Biden administration has finally removed Cuba from its short list of Nations that Sponsor Terrorism, leaving only North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Venezuela on that List. The Trump administration had put Cuba on that List and it had strengthened the U. S. Embargo/Blockade against Cuba that has existed since 1962. Above the Bridges of Love movement in the U. S. founded by Seattle professor Carlos Lazo hailed the removal of Cuba from the U. S. Terrorism List.

     Above Cuba's longtime Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez used his X-Twitter page to mention Cuba's removal from the U. S. Sponsor of Terrorism List...and used the photo above to state that Revolutionary Cuba has been subjected to deadly terror attacks, such as the bombing of the civilian Cubana 455 Flight that killed all 72 aboard. The famous photo above shows the mother and other family members mourning a teenage Cuban athlete who was on the doomed Cubana 455 Plane.

      Another major headline for Cuba in late MAY of 2024 has been China's decision {above} to resume regular flights to Cuba to encourage Chinese tourists to visit the island. It is China's way of trying to help Cuba survive its current economic crisis.

    Germany's Condor Airlines, based mostly in Frankfort, is another major airline beginning to fly tourists to Cuba.

     Of course, Canada has long been the country that has most defied the U. S. Sanctions/Embargo/Blockade against Cuba by flying tourists to the island. Four major Canadian airlines fly to Cuba including Toronto-based Air Canada and Ottawa-based Sunway Airlines. In 2024 Cuba is hoping for 1.2 million Canadian tourists.

      Canadian families, despite discouragement from the United States, still try to visit Cuba {as shown above} because of Cuba's "Culture, history, people, and beaches. Others like Cuba for its price, safety, and lack of Americanization." 

*&***********************&*

US Finally Admits Cuba Is Not a Terror Sponsor

    In these closing days of MAY in 2024 this is becoming a familiar photo from Cuban airports as Air China flights are landing on the Caribbean island that is direly suffering from a lack of tourism that Cuba blames on the tightening of the six-decade-old economic US EMBARGO, which is severely exacerbating food shortages, blackouts, and other deprivations for Cuban families. In multiple dire warlike competitions between the world's two richest and most powerful nations, China is trying to defy the United States by trying to drastically help Cuba benefit from a drastic increase of Chinese tourism.

Happy Chinese tourists now flocking to Cuba is important.

     Happily greeting one of the Air China tourism flights was Cuba's Prime Minister Manuel Marrero {in the red shirt}. He said, "This week, the United States amazingly removed Cuba from its list of nation's that sponsor terrorism...apparently admitting that Cuba is a target of terrorism and not a sponsor or promoter of terrorists. Also this week, China began a strong program to defy the U. S. blockade by strongly promoting tourism to Cuba. All countries, big and small, deserve the right to benefit from tourists and, unlike the United States, China thinks Cuba also deserves that right." 

      Today you can see above the Top Cuban Headlines flashing around the world on May 18th, 2024. The London-based BBC is reporting on Cuba's "collapsed sugar industry," in memory of the past when Cuba led the world in sugar production. The top U. S. news agency, the Associated Press, reports that the U. S. finally "removes" Cuba from its "short list of countries" considered to be sponsors of terrorism. WOW!! Now the U. S. has just four nations on the Terror List -- North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Venezuela. Yahoo News today devotes its Cuban headline to "Chinese visitors" who are beginning to flock to Cuba to defy the U. S. blockade. And, of course, Miami Herald's Cuban headline today chortles about "Cuba's economy in tailspin" that forces the island to seek help from Russia and China, the USA's two prime international competitors.

     And, meanwhile, Cuba still is home to gorgeous and world-famed tourist attractions that have suffered for over six decades because of the U. S. EMBARGO.

    Of course, back in the 1950s -- prior to the Cuban Revolution's victory in 1959 over Cuba's vile Batista dictatorship -- the U. S. wildly promoted lucrative tourism to Cuba with massive promotions such as the one depicted above.

*&***********************&*

 

Cuba Tries to Survive US Sanctions in Mid-May of 2024

     This ultra-interesting photo & headline was taken TODAY on MAY 13th-2024 and it depicts a conference at the famed Hotel National in Havana involving high-level Cuban and USA representatives. The headline above in the Cuban state media says: "CUBA & UNITED STATES CELEBRATE AGRICULTURAL CONFERENCES." Please note that this amazing conference, which started today in Havana, will continue in Washington even as the the U. S. Embargo against Cuba, which began in 1962, is causing drastic "food shortages {hunger} and blackouts in Cuba" and while the U. S. is involved in two raging wars around the world along with masssive criminal trials involving former president and current key presidential contender Donald Trump and yet another massive criminal trial starting today involving Senator Bob Menendez who happens to be the most powerful Cuban-American in America and the man most responsible for making sure that the U. S. maintains its drastic CUBAN EMBARGO. Amid all that, amzingly, you can go back and re-study that photo-caption today regarding the meeting at Havana's Hotel National!!! 

    In recent years many respected polls have revealed conclusively that one of the greatest pillars of the great U. S. Democracy, a strong and honest news media, is alarmingly now "not trusted by most American citizens." Many notable Cuban observers believe that an untrustworthy mainstream U. S. media is a key reason that, dating back to the 1950s as far as Cuba is concerned, the U. S. media's promotions of policies of extreme counter-revolutionary Cuban-Americans -- such as Bob Menendez, the Diaz-Balart brothers, Ros-Lehtinen, etc., etc. -- have massively dictated the USA's ultra-harsh Cuban policies. But despite the overall distrust of the U. S. media, there remain many great and true U. S. journalists...such as Tracey Eaton. As the former superb head of U. S. news bureaus in Mexico and Cuba, Eaton for the past 17 years has been a beloved Journalism Professsor at Flagler College in Florida. And recently he has returned to active journalism and documentaries...so, as usual, the best and most honest journalism you will find on US-Cuba Relations is from Tracey Eaton on fourms such as his "TRACEY EATON JOURNALIST" website, which is data republished by other respected media sources.

    In the last paragraph shown above and written by Tracey Eaton, he says: "A forgotten story is that Menendez may not have reached the pinnacle of political power without the support of hardline Cuban exiles, including some accused of violent attacks on Cuba." 

      Above is a federal U. S. prosecutor pointing to bundles of cash and gold bars discovered by the FBI in a closet at Bob Menendez's home, plus a luxury car he alledgedly received as one of his illegal gifts as a foreign bribe.

    Also above see/read the update from Tracey Eaton as Bob Menendez today on May 13th-2024 goes on trial for massive fraud for alledgedly taking brides, including in gold bars, from foreign countries such as Egypt and Qatar while he was am ultra-powerful U. S. Senator from New Jersey since 2006. Many of those years Menendez was the sole Chairman of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee. Back in 2017, just before he was re-elected to yet another 6-year term in the U. S. senate, Menendez barely survived a huge federal trail that charged him with multiple felonies involving Miami and Dominican Republic operatives...a trial that ended in a controverial "hung jury" verdict.

    Above is the headline today on MAY 13th-2024 from the Asssociated Press about the start of the latest federal trial of powerful U. S. Senator Bob Menendez. Not only has Menendez for many years has had massive influence regarding overall U. S. foreign policies, but he only has also been widely considered the prime U. S. leader dictating extreme anti-Cuban polcies, including making sure that the drastic six-decade-old U. S. EMBARGO on Cuba remains firmly in place.

     Meanwhile...yesterday on Mother's Day -- May 12th, 2024 -- the Cuba media reminded Cubans of cultural events even as the U. S. and much of the international media are headlining the fact that the Caribbean island, a few miles south of Florida, is experiencing drastic food shortages, continuous power blackouts, etc. As shown above, the Cuban media also stressed events such as a major concert by popular singer Monika Mesa. 

     Also...for three days last week Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez were in Moscow meeting with their Russian counterparts Vladimir Putin and Sergei Lazrov. 

      Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez, shown above second from the right, set up and approved this handshake last week in Moscow between Lazrov and Diaz-Canel. Rodriguez said: "Any fair and honest observer knows that Cuba would rather be friends to a neighbor like the United States than a faraway foreign power such as Russia. Even Russia knows that. But since 1959 the United States has employed tragic tactics, including starvation and deprivation, to overthrow Cuba's revolutionary government. All the while the United States tries to shame us when we try to make friends with countries that are not trying to starve or deprive our people." 

     Any map shows the location of little Cuba just a few miles below the United States and thousands of miles from Russia...and China.

     Although drasically short on money, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel has spent many hours and miles visiting or hosting representatives of other countries that Cuba hope will sign new "Cooperation Deals" with the desperate Caribbean island. Would Diaz-Canel prefer such an agreement with the United States? As Cuba's former Education Minister, the answer to that question appears to be an easy one, but one he doesn't expect the United States to ask him.

Cuba and the EMBARGO!!

*&***********************&*