Cuban state television showed this Friday the presence of Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, grandson and trusted man of Raúl Castro, during a meeting of the top leadership of the Communist Party and the Government headed by Miguel Díaz-Canel at the Central Committee headquarters.
The images were broadcast by Canal Caribe around 6:30 in the morning, before the public appearance of Díaz-Canel scheduled for 7:30 a.m., which had been announced the day before by official media, as previously reported in the announcement of the leader's televised address.
In the meeting, as the leader himself explained, information was provided about the state of relations between Cuba and the United States. The gathering brought together the Political Bureau, the Secretariat of the Central Committee, and the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers.
During the broadcast, Rodríguez Castro was seen sitting in the room alongside other leaders. The 41-year-old colonel, known as "El Cangrejo," was in charge of the personal security for his grandfather when he was officially in power and remains regarded as one of his closest collaborators, even though he does not hold visible positions within the Government or the Communist Party.
His presence at the meeting is significant because, although he does not have formal responsibilities in the structures of the State or the Party, Raúl Castro did not appear in the images of the gathering, despite it being a meeting of the highest leadership of the regime.
The appearance occurs amid a context of contacts between Havana and Washington, which Díaz-Canel himself publicly acknowledged on that same day. In the televised meeting, he stated that Cuban officials have engaged in discussions with representatives of the U.S. government to "seek solutions through dialogue for bilateral differences", as he later explained while confirming the existence of conversations with the United States.
He also specified that these exchanges are conducted under the direct leadership of the historical leadership of the regime. “Led by the Army General as the historical leader of our revolution and by me, in conjunction with the highest structure of the party, the State, and the government,” he said.
In recent weeks, contacts between U.S. authorities and Raúl Castro's close circle have also come to light. News reports indicated that Secretary of State Marco Rubio is having discussions with Rodríguez Castro, described by a U.S. official as "discussions about the future", as detailed in information about the contacts between Rubio and Raúl Castro's grandson.
Other revelations indicated that these exchanges have occurred directly with figures from the inner circle of the former Cuban leader, rather than through the formal government apparatus led by Díaz-Canel, amidst a strategy of political and economic pressure from Washington on Havana, as described in reports about discussions to explore transition scenarios in Cuba.
In this context, Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez's presence at a meeting of the regime's highest leadership, where the state of relations with the United States was discussed, adds a relevant element regarding his role within the environment that engages in the contacts and decisions surrounding that process.
Filed under: