Cuba Delays End of Raúl Castro’s Presidency by Two Months<br />Mr. Castro is expected to remain at the helm of the Communist Party, giving him significant sway in an authoritarian nation<br />that he and his older brother, Fidel Castro, have ruled since 1959, when they assumed power through an armed uprising.<br />21, 2017<br />Cuba’s leader, Raúl Castro, will step down as president in April, roughly two months later than anticipated, the government announced on Thursday.<br />Cuba analysts have struggled to ascertain how much power Mr. Díaz-Canel would have if he is in fact selected as Cuba’s president.<br />Vice President Miguel Díaz-Canel, 57, a Communist Party stalwart, is widely expected to become the next president.<br />The execution of the economic reform plan has been slow<br />and halting, which analysts say reflects a reluctance by Cuban leaders to allow citizens to become self-sufficient enough to challenge the status quo.<br />Cuban officials decided to push back the highly anticipated transition<br />because the government in September delayed legislative elections in the wake of damage caused by Hurricane Irma.
