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Cuba Information
Adapted from CIA World Factbook
Background
The native Amerindian population of Cuba began to decline
after the European discovery of the island by Christopher
COLUMBUS in 1492 and following its development as a
Spanish colony during the next several centuries. Large
numbers of African slaves were imported to work the
coffee and sugar plantations, and Havana became the
launching point for the annual treasure fleets bound
for Spain from Mexico and Peru. Spanish rule, marked
initially by neglect, became increasingly repressive,
provoking an independence movement and occasional rebellions
that were harshly suppressed. It was US intervention
during the Spanish-American War in 1898 that finally
overthrew Spanish rule. The subsequent Treaty of Paris
established Cuban independence, which was granted in
1902 after a three-year transition period. Fidel CASTRO
led a rebel army to victory in 1959; his iron rule has
held the regime together since then. Cuba's Communist
revolution, with Soviet support, was exported throughout
Latin America and Africa during the 1960s, 1970s, and
1980s. The country is now slowly recovering from a severe
economic recession in 1990, following the withdrawal
of former Soviet subsidies, worth $4 billion to $6 billion
annually. Cuba portrays its difficulties as the result
of the US embargo in place since 1961. Illicit migration
to the US - using homemade rafts, alien smugglers, air
flights, or via the southwest border - is a continuing
problem. The US Coast Guard intercepted 2,810 individuals
attempting to cross the Straits of Florida in fiscal
year 2006.
Location
Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the
North Atlantic Ocean, 150 km south of Key West, Florida.
Climate
Tropical; moderated by trade winds; dry season (November
to April); rainy season (May to October)
Languages
Spanish
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