Weekly Geopolitical Report by Bill O’Grady
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Weekly Geopolitical Report By Bill O’Grady April 30, 2018 generally settled on a parallel structure of government and party. Communist states Generational Change in Cuba? usually only have one accepted party so the separation of party and state was mostly (N.B. Due to business travel, the next report will be fiction. However, it was common to see the published May 14.) head of the government usually called the premier (as in the Soviet Union) or president On April 18, the Cuban National Assembly (as in Cuba and China). In China, for elected Miguel Diáz-Canel as the new example, the general secretary of the president of Cuba. On the following day, he Communist Party of China and the office of was sworn into office. There has been much the president are held by the same person. media conversation about a generational Recently, Chairman Xi was able to end term shift in Cuba. In this report, we will discuss limits on the office of the president, the potential for change on the island nation, allowing him to maintain that position past which has been communist since the 1959 2023.1 Although the office of president in a Cuban Revolution. communist state is generally ceremonial, in China, it was important enough for We will begin this analysis with a refresher Chairman Xi to insist on keeping the on communist government structure. A position past two terms. short biographical sketch of the new president will follow, which will include a The elevation of Miguel Diáz-Canel to list of previous heir apparents who were, for president isn’t significant in terms of Cuba’s various reasons, deemed unworthy. Next, power structure. Raúl Castro remains head we will examine why Miguel Diáz-Canel of the Communist Party of Cuba and emerged as the winner and what it portends therefore holds the reins of power.2 for Cuban foreign and economic policy. However, it is possible that the new Finally, we will conclude with potential president could become the leader of Cuba’s market ramifications. communist party when Castro, who is 86 years old, steps down. Then again, there is Typical Communist Government no guarantee this will occur. Osvaldo Structure Dorticós Torrado was president of Cuba Marx envisioned that communism would from 1959 to 1976 when he was replaced by lead to a “withering away” of the state as the Fidel Castro, who unified the government proletariat would take control of the means and the party under himself. As Fidel’s of production across the world and thus the health deteriorated, he was succeeded in need for government would cease. 2008 by his brother, Raúl, who held three However, Marx never detailed how this process would actually occur. Because this 1 See WGRs, Emperor Xi: Part I (3/5/2018) and Part II endpoint was undefined, as communist (3/12/2018). nations emerged, the revolutionaries who 2 It should be noted that Castro will continue to be overthrew existing governments were forced head of the armed forces as well, a position he has to form replacement administrations. They held since the 1959 revolution. Weekly Geopolitical Report – April 30, 2018 Page 2 positions of power—the presidency, leader economy, the Chinese government does of the Communist Party of Cuba and allow markets to manage most of the commander in chief of the military, the latter distribution of goods and services. China’s being a role he assumed after the revolution. economic development has been As this history shows, the return to remarkable, although income inequality has separating the presidency from the risen dramatically.3 Vietnam has also leadership of the communist party would not followed this model. Russia attempted to be unprecedented. follow this model but the breakdown in government after the collapse of the Soviet Who is Miguel Diáz-Canel? Union led to a breakdown of order that In Cuba’s power structure, Miguel Diáz- fostered a dysfunctional economy that Canel, at 58 years old, is rather young. He hampered the development of a market spent years as a government and party system. For the most part, the Russian functionary, known mostly as a manager and economy is heavily dependent on natural not a visionary. During his military service, resource exports and has failed to develop he was part of Castro’s security detail. He many other industries. was the Communist Party of Cuba’s liaison to Nicaragua and has had close contact with The other model has been followed by Cuba the Castro family since the 1980s. and North Korea. In this model, the communist party maintains control of both For the most part, he would be considered a the political system and the economy. The “grinder.” He has performed in his positions economic systems of Cuba and North Korea competently but not spectacularly. There is were supported by the Soviet Union, and nothing to suggest he has an independent their economies were adversely affected power base. As for his aspirations, he wants after its collapse in 1990. In response, both to expand telecommunications and the Kim Jong-il and Raúl Castro implemented internet across the island and improve the limited market reforms which boosted cultural lives of Cubans. However, he economic growth. However, once the appears to view the economy in a manner economy partially recovered, the consistent with the Castros. “experiment” with markets was ended.4 There have been two patterns of communist Lessons of Earlier Heir Apparents economic development since the fall of the There have been four other “rising stars” Soviet Union. The first model was since the mid-1980s that were thought to developed by China. The Communist Party have the inside track to eventually replace of China (CPC), guided by Deng Xiaoping, the Castros. They were: allowed for markets to direct most economic activity while the party maintained strict Carlos Aldana (b. 1952) was the third most control of the political system. Although the powerful person in Cuba, holding the West expected China to eventually evolve into a multiparty democracy (following a 3 https://www.ft.com/content/3c521faa-baa6-11e5- similar path of authoritarian regimes in other a7cc-280dfe875e28 (paywall) 4 parts of Asia), in fact, there is little evidence The current leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, that the CPC has any intention of easing its seems to be less concerned about market distribution. It is possible that North Korea may political control of China. Despite move to the Chinese model of communist consistent government intervention in the development. Weekly Geopolitical Report – April 30, 2018 Page 3 position of director of the Ideological However, he was allegedly recorded making Department when he was ousted by Raúl disparaging remarks about Fidel Castro and Castro in 1992. Officially, his crime was other senior party leaders. In 2009, he was personal extravagance but, in reality, he deposed from all party positions. supported the policies of Mikhail Gorbachev, who wanted to open the Soviet Carlos Lage Dávila (b. 1951) was an system. The subsequent collapse of the advisor to Fidel Castro and considered Soviet Union discredited Gorbachev and the Castro’s “economic fixer.” He was a vice policies he espoused. At the time, the president, a member of the Politburo and Castros were “circling the wagons” as they considered the “prime minister” of Cuba. faced the end of subsidies from the Soviet During the “special period” after the fall of Union and did not want any sort of internal the Soviet Union, Lage initiated a series of dissent among the ruling elite. And, perhaps economic reforms designed to loosen most importantly, Aldana was seen as regulations on the formation of markets and occasionally supporting reforms which boost domestic growth. He was also might have enhanced his personal credited with negotiating subsidized oil from popularity, which the Castros saw as a threat Venezuela, which was a key support for the and thus intolerable. Cuban economy. Considered close to Fidel, when the leader of the Cuban Revolution Roberto Robaina (b. 1956) was foreign announced his retirement there was some minister from 1993 to 1999. At the time of speculation that he could be appointed to his appointment to the Political Bureau of lead Cuba if the party leadership did not the Cuban Politburo, he was its youngest want to pass power to the elderly Raúl member. In 1999, he was accused of Castro. However, when the party decided to corruption, taking bribes from foreign install Fidel’s younger brother, it appears businessmen and having unauthorized that Raúl saw Lage and Pérez Roque as conversations with diplomats. He was threats. Like Pérez Roque, Lage was stripped of his party roles and became a stripped of his party affiliation. private citizen.5 As Raúl Castro was ousting Lage and Pérez Felipe Pérez Roque (b. 1965) was foreign Roque, he appointed Diáz-Canel to the minister from 1999 to 2009. At the time of position of first vice president, signaling that his appointment, he was the youngest he was next in line to run the Cuban member of the Cuban cabinet and the first government. However, as the list of “fallen born after the 1959 Cuban Revolution. He angels” above shows, one can fall from succeeded Robaina. Pérez Roque is credited favor quickly in the Castro regime. with deepening trade relations with China. Nevertheless, there is a likely chance that 5 When Raúl Castro denounced him at a party Diáz-Canel survives. First, he has seen the meeting in 1999, Castro said, “I’m not going to let downfall of others and knows that becoming people like you f*ck this revolution three months too popular or threatening the “old guard” is after the oldest ones disappear.” This comment a surefire way to fall from grace.