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Fidel Castro Takes Power
Fulgencio Batista flees Cuba and Fidel Castro takes power. Castro installed a communist government and established a centrally planned economy. He also made close ties to the Soviet Union. -
Embargo on US Exports to Cuba
The U.S. declares an embargo on most exports to Cuba in October 1960 and breaks diplomatic relations in January 1961. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
After Fidel Castro overthrew Cuba's dictator, he installed a communist government and that made America worried becuase Cuba is nearby. Americans didn't want to get involved in the war so they planned an invasion against Castro. The invaders were quickly defeated. -
Cuban Missle Crisis
The Cuban Missle Crisis was a confrontation between the US and the Soviet Union over the installation of Soviet nuclear missles in Cuba. The Soviet Union removed the missles because the US said they were going to remove their missles from Turkey and promised not to attack Cuba. -
Cuban Economy Devastated
The 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union devastates the Cuban economy -
Cuba Removed from US Terrorism Blacklist
The Obama administration removes Cuba from a U.S. terrorism blacklist as part of the process of normalizing relations between the Cold War foes. -
Current Political Status of Cuba
Cuba is an independent socialist republic that is controlled by 1 party: the Cuban Communist Party (PCC), of which Fidel Castro is the head, with his brother, Raul Castro as vice-president. -
Current Economic Status
Cuba’s economy remains repressed by the systemic inefficiency and institutional shortcomings characteristic of a Communist regime. Dominated by state-owned companies connected to the military and political elite, the economy continues to suffer from a lack of dynamism aggravated by cronyism, corruption, and bureaucracy. Non-state sectors have gradually expanded, but the absence of genuine political will for reform leaves business struggling within a poor regulatory framework.
