February 16 - Fidel Castro Becomes Cuban Prime Minister

This Day in History: 16 February 2020

 

16 February 1959

 

61 years ago, today, Fidel Castro was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Cuba, after the government of Cuba is overthrown, and the previous dictator, Fulgencio Batista, is forced into exile. A group of revolutionaries, led by Castro and Che Guevara, toppled the pro-American government of Cuba, however, the Americans had ended military aid to Batista's regime after more Cuban groups opposed him. He fled to the Dominican Republic, and Castro, who had fewer than 1,000 men left, took control of Cuba's 30,000 men army. The other leaders of the rebellion lacked the popular support Castro had, and so he became Prime Minister.

 

Initially, the US recognised Castro as the new Cuban dictator, but they later withdrew their support after Castro began to reform agriculture, nationalise the US assets, and became Marxist. In April 1961, the Cubans who had fled to the US when Castro came to power were supported by the CIA in launching the unsuccessful invasion of Cuba, the 'Bay of Pigs'. After this, the Soviet Union placed nuclear missiles in Cuba and increased its support for Castro, which led to the tense 'Cuban Missile Crisis'. Cuba was the first communist state in the Western Hemisphere, but after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Castro lost significant aid. Fidel Castro later began to struggle with illnesses, causing him to step down in February 2008, and he died on November 25, 2016, at the age of 90.

 

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