Interview: Cuban policy should not see major changes with Castro's death: expert

The death of Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro should neither affect the course of Cuba's internal politics nor its ties to the U.S., Carlos Eduardo Vidigal, an American history professor, at the University of Brasilia, told Xinhua on Saturday.

According to Vidigal, Cuba's political transition has been happening gradually since the 1990s, in order to guarantee stability at the time of Fidel's disappearance.

"I think the impact will be very small, the transition has been prepared since the end of the 20th century. Since then, as Fidel Castro moved away from leading the country, they have had good management since then," said Vidigal.

In terms of Cuban foreign affairs, the professor also does not expect major changes, although he considered a halt to advances with U.S. relations as possible.

"Changes have been taking place in recent decades, so I do not foresee a major alteration in this area," he said. "About relations with the U.S., matters will be at a difficult stage once non-negotiable topics for both sides are addressed. On one site, the request to lift the economic embargo on Cuba, which the U.S. Congress is resisting, and on the other, for Cuba to accept international interference on human rights."

According to Vidigal, the arrival of Republican Donald Trump to the White House may not see a reversal of the changes achieved by President Barack Obama.

"We may have reached a point where no new advances happen in the next few years. However, the possibility that Trump will reverse some of the changes promoted by Obama will depend more on the strength of the Miami Cuban lobby," he said. Enditem