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Four figures from the so-called "historical generation" of the Cuban Revolution are over 90 years old and are still alive: Guillermo García Frías (97 years), José Ramón Machado Ventura (95 years), Raúl Castro Ruz (94 years), and Ramiro Valdés Menéndez (93 years).
They all played a significant role in the revolutionary process of 1959 and, to varying degrees, remain connected to the power structure of the regime.
They are the last living survivors of that founding group who are over 90 years old.
Raúl Castro: power in the shadows
Raúl Castro is the most influential member of the group. Although he formally stepped down as First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in April 2021, analysts and President Miguel Díaz-Canel himself acknowledge that he remains the real power behind the regime.
In an interview with Telesur in April 2026, Díaz-Canel described him as "alive but retired for health reasons" and "fragile due to his advanced age."
His last public appearance was on May 1, 2026 at the Anti-Imperialist Tribune, looking noticeably unwell, after five months of absence.
He was also absent from the ninth Congress of the Communist Party of Cuba in March 2026, where Díaz-Canel was reaffirmed as first secretary.
Despite his formal retirement, Castro retains control of GAESA, the military-business conglomerate that manages about 18 billion dollars in strategic sectors and accounts for approximately 60% of the Cuban economy.
The journalist Camilo Loret de Mola summed it up clearly: "All strategic decisions go through the hands of Raúl Castro."
Ramiro Valdés: the founder of G2
Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, born on April 28, 1932, in Artemisa, was a founder of G2—the Cuban intelligence services—alongside the Soviet KGB, and served as Minister of the Interior during two terms: from 1961 to 1968, and from 1979 to 1985.
He is currently the Deputy Prime Minister responsible for energy projects.
In 2025, he led the inauguration of several photovoltaic solar parks, including the Mal Tiempo solar park in June 2025 and another one in Sancti Spíritus in September of that year.
However, he has been absent from public life without explanation for months: he has not attended the Council of Ministers since October 2025 or the sessions in March 2026.
Machado Ventura: the Party apparatus
José Ramón Machado Ventura, born on October 26, 1930, in Villa Clara, served as Minister of Public Health from 1960 to 1968, First Vice President of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers from 2008 to 2013, and Second Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party from 2011 to 2021, when he stepped down at the Eighth Congress.
Although he no longer holds official duties, he is still regarded as an influential figure within the communist hierarchy.
Díaz-Canel publicly congratulated him on his 95th birthday in October 2025.
García Frías: the longest-serving, still active
Guillermo García Frías, born on February 10, 1928, in Manzanillo, is the oldest member of the group. A combatant in the Sierra Maestra alongside Che Guevara, he served as Minister of Food Industry from 1980 to 1986.
Since 1993, he has been directing the National Company for the Protection of Flora and Fauna, a state entity under the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces linked to GAESA.
At the age of 97, he remains active: in April 2025 he inaugurated an assisted reproduction laboratory for cattle in Jimaguayú, Camagüey. The company he runs operates like a family fiefdom: his daughter, son-in-law, and grandson hold managerial positions within the same institution.
Together, these four men embody six decades of dictatorship in Cuba: they built the system, sustained it, and, in several cases, still control it from the shadows or from formal positions, while the country is experiencing its worst economic crisis in decades.
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