Raul Castro Named President Of Cuba

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With Raul in place there is likely to be no major shift in the way the communist government operates on the small island. Many Cubans had been hoping for modest economic reforms that would improve the population's daily live.

Raul has stated that he plans on consulting with Fidel on all major decisions of state and the parliament approved that proposal. The new number 2 position in the government left vacant by Raul will now be 77 year old Jose Ramon Machado. He fought along with the Castro brothers in the Sierra Maestra during the late 1950's.

The new president said the nation's sole legal party "is the directing and superior force of society and the state."

"This conviction has particular importance when because the founding and forging generation of the revolution is disappearing," Raul Castro added.

The U.S. has said the change from one Castro to another would not be significant, calling it a "transfer of authority and power from dictator to dictator light."

Cuba's parliament now must choose a new 31 member ruling body called the Council of State. The Council's president serves as the head of state and government.

Since July 31, 2006 Raul Castro has been acting of the country's leader. On that date Fidel Castro had emergency intestinal surgery and ceded his powers to his younger brother.

Transition in Cuba?" asked Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, whose country is now a major economic ally of Cuba. "The transition occurred 49 years ago, from that capitalism, dominated by imperialism, (under which Cuba) was a colony, to a socialist Cuba. The transition will continue marching forward, always with Fidel at the forefront."