With everyone buzzing around the economic reforms that were just announced in Cuba, I did a deep dive into them with chinese and cuban sources directly, and wrote about it for ProleWiki.
I just hope amerikkka keeps its paws off of Cuba
I would look at it from the other way around; the US hasn’t kept its hands off Cuba for the past 80 years, and Raul, someone who has lived through all these coups and imperial interference, is still alive (very few people from the time of the revolution are left, I saw just this morning that Commander Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, who had been with the revolutionaries all the way back at Moncada, died today). They know what imperialism looks like and what it does.
I trust Cuba to make the right decisions, they know their own conditions best. Remember: what ‘greater autonomy’ or ‘private banks’ means to them in their conditions means an entirely different thing to us.
the tl;dr is as I see these reforms, they aim to beat imperialism at its own game much like China did - though the reforms are different and Cuba insists it’s following its own path (which I have no reason not to believe).
As Kwame Ture said, you can only appeal to the conscience of your enemy if it has one, but the United States has none. 60 years of appealing at the UN has not loosened the embargo not one bit.
Socialism is not pauperism. Poverty is a torture, not a goal. A lot of ‘leftists’ only like Cuba as an example of socialism because it’s sufficiently poor; as soon as it’s not poor anymore, they disown it. They did it to China. They don’t want to win, they don’t care about people’s lives, they just want to be ideologically pure.
When you read between the lines, it’s clear the reforms are meant to create a more resilient Cuba. They mainly target food production, industry and energy. There is also a plan to overhaul the digital infrastructure and bring Cuba into an increasingly interconnected world – remember that they rarely have Internet, and if they do, people pay a premium for it, individually.
Likewise, there have been positive upgrades to state workers and caregivers: a minimum wage increase to state works (likely to retain employees and not have them leave immediately to the private sector) and up to 10 years of caregiving for a family member in need will count towards the required 30 years of work to retire, recognizing social labor. Moreover, a digital platform will be created to distribute targeted aid to Cubans in need instead of the universal subsidy. In general this is better, as it means people who need more money will receive more.
Particularly, the reforms target the diaspora as ‘foreign’ investors. This is interesting because they form a strong political bloc in the United States, where they are mostly based, and they are historically very anti-communist. But between a national of your country and a new york wall street preppie, you probably want the national to invest. This targets their material interests immediately, and pushes them to petition for easing the embargo on Cuba so they can actually open businesses and invest there. Maybe even move back to Cuba, weakening a historically counter-revolutionary base – that the PCC knows very well. They are easier to keep an eye on once in Cuba than they are in the US. Make them work for you, basically.
The communist party retains the high overview of the economy and planning, and investors are basically limited to making money, not policy. Raul Castro himself was in full support of the reforms that, he reminded, came about from a long process involving the party, the government, and the population.
Inshallah the biggest investors are Chinese companies
It could very well be their strategy, try to leverage both powers investment to their benefit, its pretty much a free-for-all type of situation. It will look very bad if the american regime immediately tries to make Cuba block Chinese investors when their entire propaganda is built on the communists blocking free trade.
Thank you. I’m cautiously optimistic, as we know tactical “retreats” are often necessary for strategic victory in the long run (retreats in air quotes because this isn’t really a retreat IMO). There are countless examples of this, and the Cuban people are remarkably steadfast in their collective fight against imperialism.
My admiration for the Cuban people runs deep and hot. It seems that my sadness wasn’t purely sorrow, but flavored with a hearty mix of anger, like a sulphur spring. I’ve had a good rest and breakfast, so I will finish the article, now.
Good to see you, as always, comrade.
Good to see you too! And I have trust that the Cuban people will stand resolute and emerge victorious.
I have utmost faith in the Cuban people. The liberal investors, especially Batistas, not at all.
I believe in them. It may get worse for some segments of the population in the short-term, but if they navigate this right, they will be incredibly better off in the long-term. Today the Chinese live in peace in their own land, because of socialism. They also struggled and fought and sacrificed for future generations, but today they live peaceful, healthy lives.
It is clear from reading the list of proposals (of which only 66% were accepted) and the government’s statements, including Comrades Raul and Diaz-Canel’s, that they know exactly what they are doing. Is it a vector for imperial interference? Yes, but just existing as a socialist nation is hazardous to one’s health. If we stopped development on the fear that we would displease western marxists and that the imperial hegemon would try to swoop in, we might as well not do anything.
Increased Chinese investments would be a panacea, as China will work with you and your system without trying to change it. Year-on-year export-import balance with China is rapidly increasing each year for Cuba (though for the time being Cuba is mostly importing from China). But because of Cuba’s economic model, Chinese participation mostly takes the form of technical and engineering cooperation. In Sept 2025, Diaz-Canel met with representatives from 77 Chinese companies to find a way to get them to work in Cuba, focusing, once again as I keep noting, on “food production, energy, cybersecurity and development in these areas” (https://www.radiohc.cu/pt/diaz-canel-se-reune-com-empresarios-chineses-interessados-em-cuba/#pll_switcher)
Anyway, I don’t want to make grand predictions before anything has had a chance to play out. But I find it difficult not to be optimistic about Cuba’s future. They’ve had their revolution; they already won. To me this isn’t a pink tide where social-democrats with milquetoast programmes get elected for 4 years and then replaced by an OAS-backed fascist because they didn’t overthrow the government structure. Cuba only has the Communist Party, and will continue to do so.
Well said! Lots to be optimistic about. Excited to see Cuban-Chinese relations flourish and result in more development for the Cuban people.
It is clear from reading the list of proposals (of which only 66% were accepted) and the government’s statements, including Comrades Raul and Diaz-Canel’s, that they know exactly what they are doing. Is it a vector for imperial interference? Yes, but just existing as a socialist nation is hazardous to one’s health. If we stopped development on the fear that we would displease western marxists and that the imperial hegemon would try to swoop in, we might as well not do anything.
Right as rain, comrade. As I work through my feelings, my optimism quickly returns. And it’s also right and prudent to watch the USians and Batistas closely.
I generally agree with the reforms except the diaspora investment, they are absolutely going to try and recapture political power but we’ll see how it develops.
Also mark my words, this is also how drugs are gonna enter the country. Certainly will be the next excuse the US uses to attack Cuba.
I agree with ur concern about the diaspora populations. I have met many (non cuban) Caribbean expats who are completely reactionary and bastardize movements such as decoloniality to some sort of nazis pipe dream . They also hate venezuela and cuba. They also work with some cuban diaspora people… who probably already hate the cuban gov.
im very worried
You are right to be wary. But I would just add that there is some historical precedent to this: namely, if you study the beginning period of Reform and Opening Up in China, much of the capital investment in the very early years came from overseas Chinese diaspora, before Western companies and investors were willing to take the risk and enter the Chinese economy.
Of course we should also be careful with such comparisons because the circumstances are not necessarily the same. Perhaps it is the case that the Cuba diaspora today is significantly more reactionary than the Chinese diaspora was in the 1970s. This needs to be taken into account.
Also, i think you are right about the danger of drugs entering Cuba. Cuba will need to take a page out of China’s book on this issue and adopt a very harsh stance on drug smuggling, otherwise this will open the door to an incredibly dangerous amount of crime and corruption.
Thank you.
I had to pause, because
it makes meI felt sad they had to stop universal programs, presumably because of US policy.I’m struggling with this phrase:
to banish the mechanical association between socialism and egalitarianism,
Can you please give me an example?
I think targeted welfare makes more sense, as some people will earn more this way, which goes a long way when you’re on welfare. However I did not see the details of how this new welfare would look like - there’s a pdf in the sources on the PW page though for the entire economic program of 2026. It’s over 120 pages long though and in Spanish, but it probably goes into the details.
As for Raul’s words, best as I can interpret them is that people mechanically believed that a socialist system must enforce strict economic equality for all citizens. This is just my interpretation though.
Thank you for helping me apprehend this. And I get targeting and tailoring an approach to material conditions. I’m just in ideological feels right now, because I feel certain things ought to be human rights, and while I am still putting off finishing the entry, it just seems Cuba was trying hard to make it happen and may have succeeded, without outside interference. Concurrently, I realize I’m jumping the gun by saying that without finishing the article. I’m also in my feelings about other things right now, so I’m kind of rummaging about, trying to determine which goes where, but there’s a lot of overlap and interconnectedness.
