Raul Castro: Cuba alive after Fidel’s death

Cuban President Raul Castro says that his country’s communist political system would not collapse even after the death of former leader Fidel Castro.

Talking about his brother, Fidel Castro, Raul scoffed at those who think Cuba’s political system will crumble after “the death of Fidel and all of us.”

“If that’s how they think, they are doomed to failure,” Castro told the Cuban National Assembly on Saturday.

The Cuban president also said that Havana is ready to negotiate with the United States about everything except its political system.

“We are ready to talk about everything, but not to negotiate our political and social system,” said Castro, who succeeded Fidel as president last year.

“I was elected to defend, maintain and continue perfecting socialism, not destroy it,” he added.

Since taking office in January, US President Barack Obama has tried to “recast” relations with Cuba. Obama eased the 47-year-old US embargo by allowing Cuban-Americans to travel and send money freely to the island.

However, the Obama administration announced that further improvements depend on Cuba making progress on human rights and political prisoners.

“It’s true there has been a diminution of the aggression and anti-Cuban rhetoric on the part of the administration,” said Castro, adding that but the embargo remained in effect and the ending of restrictions on Cuban-Americans had not yet been implemented.