Cuba Fast Facts

Median age: 42.1 years

Capital: Havana

Ethnic Groups: White 64.1%, mixed 26.6%, Black 9.3% (2012 est.)

Unemployment: 2.6% (2017 est.)

Other Facts

Before the illness of the Soviet Union successful the aboriginal 1990s, Cuba was receiving subsidies worthy $4 billion-$6 cardinal a year.

The United States pays Cuba astir $4,085 a twelvemonth to lease the 45 quadrate miles that the Guantánamo Bay Naval Station occupies. Cuba has not accepted the outgo since 1959.

Timeline

1492 - Explorer Christopher Columbus lands connected the land of Cuba and claims it for Spain. Spain controls the land until 1898, making it a hub for the enslaved commercialized and the export of sweetener and coffee.

1898 - The United States assists Cubans successful winning independency from Spain during the Spanish-American War. The Treaty of Paris gives the US impermanent power of Cuba.

1902 - Cuba gains independency from the United States.

1903 - The caller Republic of Cuba leases 45 quadrate miles of onshore successful Guantánamo Bay to the United States for operation of a naval station. Building connected the naval presumption begins that aforesaid year.

1952 - Former President Fulgencio Batista stages a coup with the enactment of the army, and assumes power.

July 26, 1953 - Fidel Castro and astir 150 others onslaught the Moncada subject barracks successful Santiago de Cuba successful an unsuccessful effort to overthrow the Batista regime.

October 16, 1953 - Castro is sentenced to 15 years successful prison.

May 15, 1955 - Castro and his brother, Raul, are released arsenic portion of a wide amnesty for governmental prisoners.

December 2, 1956 - Eighty-two exiles onshore successful Cuba, connected a yacht named Granma. Most are killed immediately. The survivors, including the Castros, fly to the Sierra Maestra Mountains. During 1957-1958, they wage a guerrilla run from this base, which includes skirmishes with authorities troops and burning sweetener crops.

January 1, 1959 - Batista is overthrown by Castro's forces.

1960 - Cuba nationalizes astir $1 cardinal of US-owned spot connected the island. In response, the United States places a commercialized embargo connected Cuba.

January 1961 - The United States and Cuba extremity diplomatic relations.

April 1961 - The United States backs Cuban exiles successful an unsuccessful effort to invade Cuba astatine the Bay of Pigs.

1977 - The US Interests Section successful Havana is opened.

April-September 1980 - Fidel Castro allows anyone who wants to permission Cuba to freely depart from the larboard of Mariel. Approximately 124,000 Cuban migrants participate the United States.

October 1983 - US troops invade the Caribbean land of Grenada, aft a radical of subject officers aligned with Cuba signifier a coup.

1994 - The United States and Cuba motion an statement designed to halt the travel of amerciable aliens from Cuba to the United States.

September 1998 - Ten radical are arrested successful Florida and charged with spying for the Cuban government. The transgression ailment alleges the 8 men and 2 women tried to infiltrate Cuban exile groups and US subject installations. Five of the defendants are aboriginal identified arsenic Cuban quality officers Ruben Campa (aka Fernando Gonzalez), Rene Gonzalez, Gerardo Hernandez, Luis Medina (aka Ramon Labanino) and Antonio Guerrero.

1999 - Clinton eases question restrictions to Cuba.

November 1999 - Five-year-old Elian Gonzalez is recovered successful the h2o betwixt Cuba and Florida, the lone subsister of a radical attempting to scope the United States by boat. A agelong custody conflict betwixt Gonzalez' begetter successful Cuba and relatives successful Florida strains relations betwixt Cuba and the United States. The standoff ends with US national agents forcibly removing the lad from his great-uncle's home. Gonzalez and his begetter instrumentality to Cuba successful June 2000.

August 2005 - The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals successful Atlanta overturns the spying convictions of the Cuban Five. The ruling is reversed successful August 2006.

July 31, 2006 - A connection work connected Cuban TV announces that Fidel Castro is undergoing intestinal country and has provisionally handed implicit powerfulness to his younger brother, Raul.

February 19, 2008 - Due to ailing health, Fidel Castro announces his resignation arsenic president successful a missive published successful the mediate of the nighttime successful the online mentation of Cuba's state-run newspaper, Granma.

February 24, 2008 - Raul Castro is chosen by Cuba's National Assembly to beryllium the country's caller president.

December 2009 - American Alan Gross is jailed portion moving arsenic a subcontractor connected a US Agency for International Development task aimed astatine spreading democracy. His actions are deemed amerciable by Cuban authorities. He is accused of trying to acceptable up amerciable net connections connected the island. Gross says helium was trying to assistance link the Jewish assemblage to the net and was not a menace to the government.

October 2011 - Gonzalez, a subordinate of the Cuban Five, is released connected probation aft serving 13 years successful prison.

February 24, 2013 - Raul Castro is reelected to a 2nd five-year term. Later during a nationally televised speech, Castro announces that helium volition measurement down from powerfulness successful 2018 erstwhile his word is over.

February 2014 - A Cuban Five subordinate Ruben Campa (aka Fernando Gonzalez) is released from situation aft serving much than 15 years.

December 17, 2014 - Cuba releases American contractor Alan Gross arsenic a "humanitarian" motion aft 5 years successful prison. As portion of a woody betwixt the United States and Cuba, the United States releases 3 Cuban quality agents convicted of espionage successful 2001; successful return, Cuba frees an unidentified US quality root who has been jailed successful Cuba for much than 20 years.

January 15, 2015 - The Obama Administration announces details of the softened question regulations: Cuban Americans visiting family, US officials connected authorities trips, journalists connected duty and regular citizens visiting for educational, taste oregon spiritual reasons volition nary longer request support first. Americans volition besides beryllium capable to usage recognition cards, a anterior restriction.

April 11, 2015 - Ending a decades-long standstill successful US-Cuba relations, President Raul Castro meets for an hr during the Summit of the Americas with Obama, the archetypal clip the 2 nations' apical leaders person sat down for substantive talks successful much than 50 years.

April 14, 2015 - Obama recommends that Cuba beryllium removed from the US government's database of authorities sponsors of terrorism.

May 29, 2015 - The United States officially removes Cuba from its database of countries that sponsor terrorism, mounting the 2 nations up for a afloat renewal of diplomatic ties.

July 1, 2015 - Obama announces that the United States is restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba and that the American embassy successful Havana volition unfastened during the precocious summer, with a sojourn from Secretary of State John Kerry.

December 17, 2015 - The US State Department announces that the United States and Cuba have agreed to resume commercialized aerial travel betwixt the 2 countries for the archetypal clip successful much than fractional a century. The Federal Aviation Administration indispensable guarantee definite information regulations are successful spot earlier flights tin resume, according to a State Department official.

January 12, 2016 - The archetypal radical of Cuban migrants leaves Costa Rica for El Salvador connected their mode to Mexico. Once successful Mexico, the migrants are connected their ain to effort transition to the United States.

February 18, 2016 - Obama announces connected Twitter that helium volition sojourn Cuba successful March, becoming the archetypal sitting US president to sojourn Cuba successful 88 years.

March 15, 2016 - The US Treasury Department announces a further loosening of restrictions, which includes allowing US travelers to prosecute successful idiosyncratic acquisition tours of Cuba. Effective connected March 16, Cuba and the United States volition resume postal service, astir 5 decades aft nonstop message work was interrupted.

March 20, 2016 - Obama arrives successful Cuba, opening a historical two-day sojourn to the land that includes meetings with Raul Castro and anti-government dissidents.

August 31, 2016 - The archetypal nonstop US commercialized formation from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Cuba touches down successful Santa Clara. JetBlue Flight 387 is the archetypal successful much than 50 years to transportation passengers to the land since Obama's announcement to reengage with Cuba.

November 30, 2016 - The ashes of erstwhile person Fidel Castro are carried from the capital, Havana, to Santiago, the birthplace of his revolution. It is the commencement of a travel that reverses the way Castro took crossed the land aft seizing powerfulness successful 1959.

March 19, 2018 - Miguel Díaz-Canel is officially named arsenic the caller person of Cuba, 1 time aft a concealed ballot successful the country's National Assembly. Díaz-Canel, 57, was selected by a ballot of 603-1 arsenic the unopposed campaigner to regenerate Raul Castro. This is the archetypal clip successful astir six decades that Cuba is being led by a antheral not named Castro.

July 23, 2018 - Cuba's National Assembly endorses a draught of a caller constitution, according to Granma, the authoritative paper of Cuba's Communist Party. Changes see allowing a way to the legalization of same-sex marriage. The draught indispensable walk done a fashionable ballot to go law.

February 24, 2019 - Cubans ballot successful favour of approving a caller constitution. The caller papers replaces the 1976 Soviet-era charter enacted under. It protects backstage spot and overseas investment, and for the archetypal clip places 2 five-year presumption connected the bureau of the presidency. However, pursuing a backlash by blimpish spiritual groups, the authorities backs disconnected from connection that would person legalized same-sex matrimony successful the constitution.

June 4, 2019 - The US announces large caller restrictions connected US citizens traveling to Cuba, blocking the astir communal mode Americans are capable to sojourn the land -- done organized circuit groups that licence US citizens to question automatically -- and banning US cruise ships from stopping successful the country.

October 11, 2019 - Cuba's National Assembly reappoints Diaz-Canel to service arsenic president. The five-year word holds the anticipation of renewal for an further 5 years. He is expected to sanction a premier minister, a recently created presumption meant to tally the day-to-day governance nether the caller constitution.

January 11, 2021 - Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announces the Trump medication has designated Cuba a authorities sponsor of terrorism, reversing an Obama-era determination to region the label.

July 11, 2021 - Thousands of Cubans instrumentality to the streets to protestation a deficiency of nutrient and medicine arsenic the state undergoes a sedate economical situation aggravated by the Covid-19 pandemic and US sanctions. Many chanted for "freedom" and called for President Díaz-Canel to measurement down.