Obama's half-hearted condolences reflect declining US influence: Scholar

US President Barack Obama's half-hearted condolences over the death of Fidel Castro reflected the declining influence of the United States in Latin America, according to Professor Dennis Etler, an American political analyst who has a decades-long interest in international affairs.

Etler, a professor of Anthropology at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California, made the remarks in an interview with Press TV on Saturday, shortly after Obama expressed his condolences over the death of former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Castro passed away at the age of 90 on Saturday. He ruled Cuba for five decades until 2006 and before ceding power to his brother Raul.

The United States broke off diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1961 and placed an official embargo against the country in 1962.

The two countries became ideological foes soon after the 1959 revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power and their ties remained hostile even after the end of the Cold War.

Earlier this year, Obama visited the Latin American country and told Cubans in an unprecedented live television address that he came to Cuba to open a new chapter in the relations between Washington and Havana. He called for a new direction of peace and friendship between the United States and Cuba.

“After over half a century of economic warfare against Cuba the US, under the Obama administration, finally had its ‘Nixon moment’ and recognized the Cuban government and its political and social system as a reality,” Professor Etler said.

“US policy under Obama went from carrying the ‘big stick’ of economic embargo and diplomatic isolation to offering the ‘soft speaking’ of diplomatic recognition and an easing of economic sanctions. Although the embargo still exists it has been significantly lessened and the flow of people and trade goods between the two countries is slowly being normalized,” he added.

‘Changing global balance of power’

“The US vendetta against Cuba was a relic of the ‘Cold War.’ Former enemies, against whom ‘hot wars’ were fought, China in North Korea, and Vietnam have long since had normal relations with the US. Cuba, however, stuck in the craw of US imperialism, as it remained defiant and supportive of revolutionary and populist left-wing movements throughout the world,” the analyst explained.

“The shift in US policy was a product of the changing global balance of power. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the withdrawal of its financial and political support, the US anticipated the quick demise of socialist Cuba as well. But Cuba was able to persevere,” he said.

“With the support of revolutionary Venezuela under Hugo Chavez and aid proffered by the People's Republic of China, Cuba eventually recovered and began its own process of reform and opening up. Cuba's influence continued to grow, especially in Latin America where a high tide of leftist populism swept over the hemisphere in the 2000s,” he stated.

‘Attempt to deflect Cuba from revolutionary path’

“The crisis of capitalism, epitomized by the 2008 economic collapse, also contributed to the US reassessment of its relations with Cuba. The Obama administration felt it was better to try and economically and politically subvert Cuba from within than try to force it to cower to external economic and political aggression,” Professor Etler said.  

“This premeditated attempt to deflect Cuba from its revolutionary path was and is bound to fail, but the change in US policy should nevertheless be welcomed as it will yield substantive benefits to the Cuban people. Being subject to US economic sanctions should not be seen as a ‘badge of honor’ the forsaking of which somehow demeans the Cuba Revolution and Cuban socialism,” he noted.

‘Socialism with Cuban characteristics’

“Looking at the legacy of Fidel Castro and the ‘socialism with Cuban characteristics’ that he inspired clearly illustrates the superiority of the socialist system and the lengths by which US imperialism will go to in order to defeat and dismantle it by whatever means possible, wherever it rears its head,” the expert said.

“A telling comparison can be made between Cuba and the US colony of Puerto Rico. Both were ‘liberated’ from Spanish colonialism after the US defeat of Spain in the Spanish-American War of 1898. Cuba eventually obtained nominal independence as a US dominated vassal until Fidel's revolution in 1959. Puerto Rico however was placed under direct US administration and still is to this day,” he added.

“A few comparisons are thus warranted. Puerto Rico, as an US dependency, is an economic basket case, with $80 billion dollars of debt, over 46% of its people living below the poverty line, an official unemployment rate of 12%, and an accelerating number of economic refugees seeking a better life elsewhere,” he continued.

Cuba, a thriving socialist republic

“Socialist Cuba, on the other hand, in the face of a hostile US, has, based on UN and other independent statistics,  virtually eliminated poverty and unemployment and has a higher Human Development Index than most Latin American countries with free health care, free education at all levels, low inflation and steady economic growth. The ‘fake news’ is that Cuba is an economic disaster while Puerto Rico is a thriving democracy. The ‘real news’ is the direct opposite,” Professor Etler stated.

“Obama's offer of condolences is thus an attempt to save face. The US rollback of its anti-Cuba policy fell victim to the changing balance of power in Latin America, with China's increasing economic and diplomatic clout in the region,” he observed.

“The incoming Trump administration has expressed opposition to Obama's initiatives vis a vis Cuba. That is more an attempt to placate its base rather than a clear enunciation of a coherent geo-political analysis. Only time will tell how Cuban-American relations will continue to development and how the Cuban developmental path will unfold,” the commentator concluded. 

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