Alejandro Castro Espín (born 29 July 1965) is a

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n political and military figure. He holds the rank of General of Division or Major General in the

Interior Ministry An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

of Cuba. He is the only son of

Raúl Castro Raúl Modesto Castro Ruz (; ; born 3 June 1931) is a retired Cuban politician and general who served as the first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, the most senior position in the one-party communist state, from 2011 to 2021, succeedi ...

, the former

First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba The First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba ( es, Primer Secretario del Comité Central del Partido Comunista de Cuba) is the ''de facto'' leader of Cuba. The First Secretary is the highest office within the Commu ...

, and

Vilma Espín Vilma Lucila Espín Guillois (7 April 1930 – 18 June 2007) was a Cuban revolutionary, feminist, and chemical engineer. She helped supply and organize the 26th of July Movement as an underground spy, and took an active role in many branches ...

, one of the main leaders of the

Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in cou ...

; he is a nephew of

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...

Biography

Alejandro was born on 29 July 1965. He is the only son of the marriage between Raúl Castro and Vilma Espín (1930–2007), and brother of Deborah, Mariela and Nilsa. His sister

Mariela Mariela is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Mariela Antoniska (born 1975), Argentine field hockey goalkeeper in the national women's team (won Olympic medals in 2000 & 2004) *Mariela Castro (born 1962), the director of the Cuban ...

is one of the country's most prominent

sexologists Sexology is the scientific study of human sexuality, including human sexual interests, behaviors, and functions. The term ''sexology'' does not generally refer to the non-scientific study of sexuality, such as social criticism. Sexologists app ...

, and also director of the National Center for Sex Education in Cuba. He participated in the Cuban contingent sent by his government to the

Angolan Civil War The Angolan Civil War ( pt, Guerra Civil Angolana) was a civil war in Angola, beginning in 1975 and continuing, with interludes, until 2002. The war immediately began after Angola became independent from Portugal in November 1975. The war was ...

, and although he did not fight on the

front line A front line (alternatively front-line or frontline) in military terminology is the position(s) closest to the area of conflict of an armed force's personnel and equipment, usually referring to land forces. When a front (an intentional or uninte ...

, he had an accidental injury to an eye (no eye loss) during a military exercise in

Luanda Luanda () is the capital and largest city in Angola. It is Angola's primary port, and its major industrial, cultural and urban centre. Located on Angola's northern Atlantic coast, Luanda is Angola's administrative centre, its chief seaport ...

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

. This injury earned him the nickname "The One-Eyed" ( es, El Tuerto) among Cuban dissidents. Alejandro Castro is an engineer and has a master's degree in

international relations International relations (IR), sometimes referred to as international studies and international affairs, is the scientific study of interactions between sovereign states. In a broader sense, it concerns all activities between states—such as ...

. He has also been highlighted as a researcher on issues related to defense and national security. Since his father,

, came to power, Alejandro has become personal assistant to the president and been involved in various political events and official visits, which has increased speculation about the possibility that he is Castro's successor as head of the Cuban regime. He regularly writes articles in the Cuban press, and in 2009 he presented his first book, ''El Imperio del Terror'' ( en, The Empire of Terror), published by the publishing house of the Cuban Interior Ministry, which explains his particular vision of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

' interests of power in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

References

External links

Selected articles by Alejandro Castro Espín
1965 births Living people People from Havana Cuban communists Cuban revolutionaries Cuban military personnel of the Angolan Civil War

Alejandro Alejandro is the Spanish form of the name Alexander. Alejandro has multiple variations in different languages, including Aleksander (Czech, Polish), Alexandre ( French), Alexandros (Greek), Alsander (Irish), Alessandro (Italian), Aleksandr (Rus ...

Cuban people of Canarian descent Cuban people of Galician descent Cuban people of French descent Children of national leaders {{Cuba-mil-bio-stub