Joint Statement by the Executive Committee of the Austrian Labor Party (PdA) and the Central Leadership of the Youth Front. Vienna, August 13, 2026.
Fidel Castro Ruz, who turns 100 today, was a great communist, internationalist, and leader of the Cuban Revolution. Even today, his legacy continues to inspire communists of all ages around the world.
The attempt to storm the Moncada Barracks in Santiago de Cuba, despite its failure, became legendary, and the date, July 26, came to give its name to the Cuban revolutionary movement. That day marked the beginning of the Cuban Revolution. As Commander-in-Chief, Fidel Castro led the rebel army against the vastly superior forces of the dictator Fulgencio Batista. After more than two years of guerrilla warfare, the revolution triumphed on January 1, 1959. Batista’s flight marked the collapse of a dictatorship that was also an outpost of U.S. imperialism. On February 16, the revolutionary leader became Prime Minister.
The revolution set out to dismantle the social foundations of the old order. Through agrarian reform, the nationalization of key economic sectors, literacy initiatives, and the expansion of health and education systems, socialism was built in Cuba. And this was achieved under the most difficult conditions: Cuba withstood the attempted invasion by U.S. imperialism at the Bay of Pigs, countless assassinations and terrorist attacks, and a criminal blockade that continues to this day and encompasses every aspect of life.
The imperialists were unable to crush the Cuban Revolution. On the contrary, the revolution’s significance transcended the island’s borders. Cuba became a prime example of proletarian internationalism. Cuba supported anti-colonial and anti-imperialist liberation struggles, including in Angola, where Cuban fighters fought alongside Angolan forces against the South African apartheid army and its allies. To this day, Cuban doctors and healthcare workers provide medical assistance around the world.
Despite numerous assassination attempts by U.S. imperialism, Fidel Castro died of natural causes on November 25, 2016, at the advanced age of 90. What his opponents were unable to overthrow through violence endures in the achievements and political experiences of the Cuban Revolution.
“What meaning would our lives have, what future would our people have without socialism and the revolution?” (Fidel Castro, 1992)