After Fidel Castro transferred power to his younger brother, Raul, in early August, analysts have been watching Cuba closely and speculating about a post-Castro Cuba. But little has changed under Raul, and attention has shifted to the roles of Venezuela and the United States as both seek to influence Cuba’s future.

Brian Latell, who for many years was the CIA’s top Cuban and Latin American analyst, says if Fidel Castro is unable to recover from his ailments his successors are likely to be more willing to experiment with economic reforms. He also recommends the Bush administration establish formal contacts with the Cuban military.

Fidel Castro's government says the Cuban leader has ceded power temporarily to his younger brother Raul to allow the revolutionary icon to recover from gastro-intestinal surgery. It marks the first time since 1959 power has been exercised by anyone but the "maximum leader," piquing the interest of analysts abroad.

With an aging Fidel Castro possibly preparing to step down soon, U.S. officials reaffirm a plan to spur democracy in Cuba. But the initiative stirs concern that attempts to disrupt the Cuban political transition could backfire on the United States.

Cuba's retention on the terrorism list has received more attention in recent years
in light of increased support for legislative initiatives to lift some U.S. sanctions
under the current economic embargo

The Department of Economic and Social Affairs Statistics Division discusses small islands and small countires developing states with more influence on the world.

Council Senior Fellow Julia Sweig shatters the mythology surrounding the Cuban Revolution in a compelling revisionist history that reconsiders the roles of Fidel Castro and Che Guevara and restores, to a central position, the leadership of the Cuban urban underground, the Llano.