As Russia continues to face international isolation and economic sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine last year, a recent report allegedly claims Moscow is relying on Cuban immigrants living in Moscow to fight in Kyiv, the Ryazan Gazette, a local news outlet in the Ryazan region of central Russia reported.
According to the local Russian news outlet, several Cubans were taken to an area of the "special military operation" following their decision to join the Russian army. The report said that Cubans and others who signed the fighting contracts get a one-time payment from Russia's federal government of $2,433 and another $2,500 from Ryazan's regional budges.
Recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a bill granting citizenship to individuals who enlist in the Russian army.
The Ryazan Gazette also noted that Cuban fighters would receive a monthly salary of $2,545. Kremlin officials have said that the Cuban immigrant joining their forces are volunteers and not part of the Cuban army.
Following the war's extension, dozens of Russian officials traveled to Cuba after the US and Western European allies issued condemnations and economic sanctions against government officials affiliated with Putin and Russia's economy.
Speaking to the Spanish-language version of Russia Today (RT), Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel stated that his government is "unconditional" in its support for Russia's invasion.
"We condemn, and we don't accept the expansion of NATO to the borders of Russia," he told RT.
An ally to both Cuba and Russia, Belarus also signed a deal this month to train troops. According to reports, Belarus Deputy Defense Minister for International Military Cooperation Valery Revenko said he sat down with Cuban officials, including Cuba's military attaché in Russia and Belarus, Colonel Mónica Milián Gómez, who took a tour of military weaponry during the meeting.
Experts say Belarus could become a "coordinating site," allowing Cuban troops and others to meet Russians and act against Ukraine from there.
From the height of the Cold War to today, Cuba and Russia continue to strengthen economic and military relations against the U.S. and Western Europe. During the late 1950s, Russia supported Cuban Communist leader Fidel Castro and his guerrilla warfare against the U.S.-backed Batista regime, ending years of economic stability and progress in the island state and handing it over to the Soviet Union.
Once in power, Castro began killing and imprisoning ordinary Cubans for speaking out against the regime while allowing the USSR to transport and secretly install missiles in the island state against the U.S., resulting in the Cuban missile crisis.
After the Berlin Wall fell and Putin consolidated power at home, Moscow reiterated its support for the Castro regime, providing economic and military resources to revive Russia's presence in Latin America.
When Putin announced his invasion of Ukraine last year, countries like Cuba, Syria, Iran, North Korea, China, and other anti-Western regimes echoed support for his war.
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