Relationship Between Cuba And The United States

The Cuban Revolution was touchy topic for the United States and Cuba. America’s alienation of Cuba didn’t help when communism from the USSR was brewing over the revolution. When the revolution gained Castro as its leader, the worry and hatred from the United States was unbearable, especially when the Soviet Union landed in Cuba to interest Castro in its aid. The US’s fear of communism, Fidel Castro, and aid from the Soviet Union was significant because it changed the US’s political role in Cuba during the Cuban Revolution.

After it became officially globally acknowledged that Cuba was in fact a communist state and was being led through a dictatorship run by Castro, it did not take long before powerful enemies and essential allies were formed. The act of seizing all foreign land with none or very little compensation was received with great hostility amongst those who lost in their property through this process, and probably the reaction that had the biggest impact on Cuba’s economy was that of the US. Castro’s communistic policies did not of course help calm this resentment and also took part in leading to the establishment of trade embargos with Cuba from the US. This meant that Cuba would now lose a very valuable buyer of their precious sugar, [5] but they did however gain another one, a powerful nation that shared quite similar Marxist ideals and were quick to form an alliance with the Cubans, the USSR.

In 1959, Cubareceived 74 percent of its imports from the US, and the US received 65 percentof Cuba’s exports. On February 3, 1962, the United States imposed a fulltrade embargo on Cuba, completely ending any type of trade between the twocountries. This embargo remains in effect today, more than four decades later,and has grown ! to be a huge center of debate and controversy (DeVarona 8).Opponents to the embargo argue that the embargo does nothing more than hurt theCuban people, while proponents argue that the embargo places pressure on Castroto repair Cuba’s mismanaged and corrupt government. Both the supportersand the opponents of this embargo have strong arguments and evidence to supportthese

During the Cold War, relations between Cuba and the United States were icy. Cuba was allied with the USSR, America’s enemy, and was well within their sphere of influence. With events like the failed Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis happening on their soil, Cuba was at the center of the Cold War. Between ideological differences and their alliance with Russia, Cuba became an enemy of America as well. It took the efforts of ten American presidents, six Popes, and countless other actors, but Cuba and America are finally in the process of normalizing relations. There is still work to be done, but the path is clear and the time is right. However, one cannot simply ignore the last fifty years. In that time, millions of lives were affected by the lack of social, economic, and political ties between the U.S. and Cuba. In this paper, I will analyze the last fifty years of U.S. - Cuban relations by looking at the involved actors, their means, and their values and interests through the lenses of two paradigms, realism and constructivism.

In the article, “Why Do We Still Have an Embargo of Cuba?” Patrick Haney explores the history of the embargo and the different factors which have maintained and tightened its restrictions over the past fifty years. The embargo consists of a ban on trade and commercial activity, a ban on travel, a policy on how Cuban exiles can enter the U.S., and media broadcasting to the island. These once-executive orders now codified into law by the Helms-Burton Act, have become a politically charged topic which wins and loses elections, spawned influential interest groups, and powerful political action committees.

Tensions between the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Cuba had always been apparent due to the United States heavy involvement within the countries. However, our nation also had a tendency to turn the other cheek if the issue Cuba had been dealing with was in favor of the United States. Though Cuba was economically doing very well, their political system was in turmoil with itself. This made them vulnerable to attack, and the U.S. took advantage of this. After the U.S.S. Maine was attacked in the Spanish-American war, the United States entered, and demolished. We did not suffer nearly as many casualties as those of the Spanish army. Many Cubans migrated to the U.S., but found a large portion of their natural rights taken by new acts and regimes. Puerto

Castro used his influence to persuade the Cuban people to fight for him in the revolution against Batista’s government. With the people on his side, Castro successfully overthrew the Cuban government and was eventually elected President. These people believed in Castro, and that he would make Cuba a better place to live and work in. Once Fidel Castro had control, he named himself dictator for life and made Cuba a socialist nation who openly embraced communism. Cuba became the only communist nation in the Eastern Hemisphere. As a result of this new socialist regime many Cubans fled to the United

Cuba’s colorful history can be documented to before the days of the American Revolution in 1776, but today, American policy directly affects many Cubans’ lifestyles because of a nearly 45-year-old trade embargo that has been placed on the island nation. It is crucial to analyze the development of Cuba and its neighboring island nations in order to discern the reasons for Cuba’s current political situation with the United States. The following paper will discuss the events that shaped Cuba and larger Caribbean nations like Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica; next, a detailed description of Cuba’s turbulent history will help in explaining the Cuban transformation into a

In the 1990’s two events officially define the current policy of the U.S-Cuban embargo, in 1996 the passage of the Helms-Burton Act, replacing, or Torricelli Act of 1992 better known as the Cuban Democracy Act, which previously embodied a tightening of the original embargo restrictions on U.S subsidiaries trade with Cuba. Also, the Torricelli Act “epitomized a change of policy aims for the embargo.” In 1991the fall of the Soviet Union call for a change of policy change in National Security. The containment of communism was harder to justify, however, given after the events in South America where new democratic governments had developed in Argentina, Brazil and Chile

From the time, Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba tensions ran high between the Cuban government and the United States government. Relations between Cuba and the United States grew during Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations. Not as much during the Eisenhower administration as the Kennedy administration did tensions between between the two countries intensify. Kennedy faced many a different situations as President. He faced such situations like the Bay of Pigs Invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Tensions have mounted high for a long time between Cuba and the United States.

Although Obama’s desire for better relations with Cuba is an important factor in the normalization of US-Cuban relations, the most important factor is a change in national opinion towards Cuba, a second image analysis. In 1998, a poll by ABC News indicated that 38% of Americans believed that diplomatic relations should be re-established with Cuba (Polling Report). A similar poll conducted in 2015 by USA Today/Gallup put that number at 61% (Polling Report). Any political decision is strongly influenced by public opinion. Obama’s decision to normalize US-Cuban relations is only possible because more people, particularly Cuban-Americans, are open to the idea of better relations between the two nations. Historically, many Cubans have moved to the US to flee persecution and oppression under the dictatorial Cuban government. Traditionally they have been the strongest opponents against US-Cuban rapprochement, but in recent decades this opposition has eased considerably. This may be because of a generational shift in the Cuban-American community, as second- and third- generation Cuban-Americans have become more tolerant and welcome towards greater openness between the two countries.

Castro started his life with a family that was well off, which he gave up to fight for what he believed in. He fought for freedom and became what he fought to begin with. Castro was born Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz to Lina Ruz Gonzalez and Angel Castro y Argiz on his father’s farm near Birán (Schlesinger). In late 1945 Castro went to University of Havana to study law and became immersed in the political climate of Cuba (Boadle).Castro finally gave control of Cuba to his brother in 2006 due to no longer being able to run the country(Boadle). Fidel Castro, the child of a well-off spanish-born landowner, established the first communist state in the western hemisphere, overthrew the dictatorship of Fulguero Bastita, and ruled for five decades

Is it a good idea to open relations with the Cuban Government? It has been more than eighty years since a US President has visited Cuba. The two nations have had no diplomatic relations since 1961. One may ask how beneficial for the US to conjoin forces with Cuba? Improving relations with Cuba will benefit American Government because of what it can learn about health care, disaster preparedness, tourism and Trade.

Fidel Castro was born on August 13, 1926 in the Bíran, Cuba. (See Figure 5) Fidel grew up in wealthier circumstances than most Cubans at the time, amid the massive and growing poverty. His father, Ángel Castro y Argiz, was originally an immigrant from Spain. During Fidel’s childhood, Ángel was a fairly prosperous sugarcane farmer on a farm that had been dominated by United States owned United Fruit Company. His mother, Lina Ruz Gonzalez, was a maid to Angel's first wife, during Fidel’s infancy. By the time Fidel was fifteen, his father disbanded his first marriage and wed Lina, who is seen by Fidel to be his true mother. Fidel was educated in private Jesuit boarding schools. By 1945, he entered the law school at the University of Havana.

In 1940 to 1944, communist Fulgencio Batista withheld power as the president of Cuba and then from 1952 to 1959, United States backed dictator until fleeing Cuba because of Fidel Castro’s 26th of July Movement. Socialist Fidel Castro governed the Republic of Cuba as Prime Minister from 1959 to 1976 and then as President from 1976 to 2008. Fidel Castro’s intent was to provide Cuba with an honest democratic government by diminishing the corrupt way in which the country was run, the large role the United States played in the running of Cuba as well as the poor treatment & the living conditions of the lower class.