1. Cuba

2. When you think of Cuba, you think of sugar cane plantations

3. Or, you might be aware of the very highly sought Cuban cigars….a fine export to other countries!

4. Fulgencio Batista was the leader of Cuba during the 1940s and 1950s. He allowed Americans to open hotels and casinos. Americans owned many sugar cane plantations and other Cuban businesses, and the US invested lots of money into Cuba. He became a dictator and restricted the freedoms of the Cuban people. Cuban Government

5. 1959

6. Fidel Castro Che Guevara Leaders of the Cuban Revolution

7. Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev Cuban President Fidel Castro

8. Cuban Missile Crisis - 1962 President John F. Kennedy 90 miles from Florida to CubaRange of Soviet missiles from Cuba X Ships are blocked from Cuba

10. When the US promised to remove missiles from Turkey, the USSR agreed to remove the missiles from Cuba – crisis over!

11. Embargo 1962-2013 When Cuba became a Communist country, the US started an embargo

12. NO US trade with CUBA EMBARGOEMBARGO EMBARGOEMBARGO

13. US autos from the 1950s and ‘60s are still in use! US Embargo = No New US Cars

14. Soviet Union Steps In Due to the embargo, Cuba needed food, oil, automobiles, heavy equipment and many other things. The Soviet Union took the opportunity and became a big supporter of Cuba.

15. Cuban Exports

16. Who are you going to call? After the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1990, Cuba needed trading partners and friendly neighbors to assist them, as the US embargo was still in place. One of the countries which reached out to Fidel Castro was Venezuela, led by Hugo Chavez. Former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez And Cuban Dictator Fidel Castro

18. Cubans escape to the US in search of freedom

19. Many Cubans settle in…. MIAMI

20. Fidel Castro’s brother, Raul, was named President of Cuba in 2008, when Fidel Castro retired. In February 2013, Raul Castro announced he will retire in 2018. What is next for Cuba? Cuban President Raul Castro