If there are natural born leaders and revolutionaries then Fidel Castro stands alongside them in the front rank. His role in shaping the modern world is greater than any of his contemporaries. Millions of people throughout the world will share a profound sense of mourning upon hearing of his death.

Cuba has performed incredible feats of endurance since the collapse of the Soviet Union, which was its main trading partner until 1991. The demise of the Soviet Union produced an economic catastrophe for Cuba, and Cuba's survival would have been impossible if the people did not support their government and leader. It was the election of Hugo Chavez as the president of Venezuela in 1998 that rekindled the socialist and internationalist dreams of the Cuban revolution. And Venezuela provides vital economic support to Cuba in exchange for assistance from Cuban doctors, who provide free healthcare to the people. However, the death of Chavez in 2013 was a huge blow to Cuba. And Venezuela's economic crisis has hit Cuba hard. Now China is Cuba's biggest trading partner and can provide essential support to Cuba in the face of new threats under Donald Trump's presidency.

Indeed, there were jubilant scenes of dancing and cheering in Miami - the homeland of reactionary anti-communist Cubans-in-exile. Many of them support Donald Trump, who did not bother to send his condolences to the Cuban people. Rather, he denounced Castro as "a brutal dictator" and described Cuba as "a totalitarian island." Trump declared: "It is my hope that today marks a move away from the horrors endured for too long, and toward a future in which the wonderful Cuban people finally live in the freedom they so richly deserve." Despite Trump's supposed non-interventionist rhetoric, the United States will still intervene to manipulate politics and economics around the world. The powerful and wealthy groups that dominate the USA will continue to defend their international interests by any means deemed necessary.

When Castro nationalized its companies in 1960 the U.S. government imposed its ongoing economic blockade. This stifled the potential of the Cuban economy, which was forced to turn to the Soviet Union for help until it collapsed in 1991. Cuba foiled hundreds of attempts on Castro's life organized by the US state. They defeated a U.S.-backed invasion, and faced down all manner of terrorist attacks and sabotage orchestrated in Washington.

This is largely explained by the tenacity, energy and determination of Fidel Castro. His ability to win and sustain the support of his people was rooted in their collective purpose - to build a new and better society.

Castro began his political activity as a law student fighting for genuine national independence and social justice. But like his Argentinian friend and comrade-in-arms Che Guevara, Castro's vision extended to the whole of the Caribbean, South America and beyond. They both believed in a unified South American continent. However, precisely because they confronted the U.S., the defense of their own revolution led them to seek support from all over the world. They carried out acts of international solidarity offering skills, talent and resources to back revolutions in Africa, South America and elsewhere. Indeed, when a wave of global unrest engulfed much of the world in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Cuba was regarded as the ally of oppressed people everywhere. Castro was even hailed in the USA, particularly by the black community in New York's Harlem district.

The Greek philosopher Archimedes said that with a firm place to stand on he could move the universe. If Cuba is that place, then it is Fidel Castro who took the role of Archimedes in our time.

Heiko Khoo is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit:

http://www.h5a3.com/opinion/heikokhoo.htm

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