By Jim Burns. CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer. November 27,
2001. CNS News
(CNSNews.com) - The Cuban military, once known for trying to export
communism to many countries in Latin and South America as well as Africa, has
been slashed by 80 percent since 1987, according to a report from the U.S.
Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA). And Cuba's ability to conduct military
exercises is further reduced by the fact that 75 percent of its major equipment
is no longer in use, the report states.
Another report, published in the journal, "Problems of Post-Communism,"
describes the "dramatic" economic decline in Cuba following the 1989
decision by the former Soviet Union to cut off aid to the government of Fidel
Castro.
"The Cuban economy shrank by 40 percent between 1989 and 1993. Exports
fell by more than 70 percent while imports (mostly fuel and food) also
precipitously declined by 75 percent," the journal reported.
As a result, the Cuban Armed Forces were among those hardest hit.
"As an institution, they faced drastic reductions in forces, budgets,
spare parts, and resources, at the same time their mission was being
domesticated and diminished. As individuals and families, they suffered many of
the same shortages and difficulties felt by the rest of the population,"
according to the journal.
The DIA says the number of active forces, which stood at 297,000 in 1987, is
now just 55,000, a drop of over 80 percent. The cutoff of Soviet aid also caused
most of Cuba's naval vessels and aircraft to become inoperable because of fuel
and spare parts shortages, the DIA report states.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also struck a blow to the Castro government
recently when he announced that the Russian military would pull out of the
Lourdes base, a big Russian spy center that was built during the 1960s after the
Cuban missile crisis. Putin said closing Lourdes would save the Russian
government about $200 million a year in rent and salaries, but did not say when
the actual withdrawal would take place.
General Alvaro Prendes, the first man to serve as general of the Cuban Air
Force under the Castro regime, spoke about the Cuban military's decline Tuesday
during a Washington conference.
According to Prendes, "The Cuban Armed Forces are completely and highly
politicized. Professionalism and discipline are secondary in comparison with
politics."
Prendes said the Cuban Army has become part of the Cuban Communist Party and
has been assigned such duties as cutting sugar cane, managing state enterprises,
feeding the Cuban people and performing any other duties Fidel Castro dictates.
The Castro government has also assigned special forces to monitor
high-ranking military officers, both on duty and at home, to prevent any type of
rebellion from occurring, Prendes said.
The Castro government court-martialed Prendes after he publicly called on
Castro to resign. Prendes sought and was granted political asylum in the United
States. He now lives in Miami and is working on a book detailing his experiences
in the Cuban Armed Forces both before and after Castro's takeover.
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