It is essential to recognize the value of the work of Piero Gleijeses, an Italian-born historian based in the United States, whose scholarship has shed light—with rigor and honesty—on Cuba’s role in international affairs, particularly during the most intense years of the Cold War.
Gleijeses is a professor of U.S. foreign policy at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University. In his seminal book, Conflicting Missions: Havana, Washington, and Africa, 1959–1976, he documents—through irrefutable academic rigor—Cuba’s involvement in Africa, especially in Angola, Mozambique, and other nations where Cuban doctors, teachers, and internationalist fighters joined the anti-colonial struggles of African peoples. His research effectively debunks decades of myths and distortions promoted by power centers eager to reduce Cuban foreign policy to a narrow East–West Cold War narrative.
Using declassified sources, personal interviews, and first-hand testimonies, Gleijeses demonstrates that Cuba’s involvement in Africa was not driven by external orders or geopolitical ambitions, but by the profound ethical and political commitment of the Cuban Revolution to the cause of the oppressed. Under Fidel Castro’s leadership, that solidarity was never framed as charity—it was a revolutionary duty, born of conviction and humanity.
In the face of those who have tried to minimize or distort Cuba’s role in history, Gleijeses’ work offers a nuanced, well-documented, and deeply respectful account, which affirms the consistency between Cuba’s declared principles and its actions on the global stage.
We revisit Gleijeses’ work today, July 18, on International Nelson Mandela Day and the 107th anniversary of the birth of this indispensable African leader, and not by mere coincidence. In an article published in Granma, the official Cuban newspaper, on May 13, 2003, Gleijeses stated:
“What Conflicting Missions says is strictly the truth—but it is a truth that pains many here [in the U.S.]. And it is truly beautiful—especially in such a sad moment, when the imperial arrogance of the United States seems to know no limits—that through my book Mandela’s voice can be heard: What country has a history of greater altruism than Cuba, led by Fidel Castro, has shown in its relations with Africa?”
Fidel and Mandela: A Friendship Sealed by Dignity
When Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990, after 27 years of confinement, the world celebrated the end of one of the most shameful injustices of the 20th century. Yet amid the global applause, Mandela reserved special recognition for one friend in particular: Fidel Castro, leader of the Cuban Revolution.
That friendship was not born of diplomatic niceties or strategic convenience. In the darkest years of South African apartheid—when many powerful governments still courted the racist regime in Pretoria—Cuba put its blood and destiny on the line for Africa’s freedom.
Beginning in the mid-1970s, Cuba sent tens of thousands of internationalist fighters and medical personnel to Angola, in support of the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), who were resisting both internal opposition and the invasion by the South African army. It was one of the most daring expressions of Cuban internationalism—and a historic turning point.
The victory at the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale in 1988—described by Mandela as “the turning point in the struggle to free our continent and our people from the scourge of apartheid”—not only forced South Africa to withdraw from Angola, but also accelerated the end of its occupation of Namibia, and pressured the white South African elite to begin negotiating the dismantling of apartheid.
This is why, upon his release from prison, one of Mandela’s first international visits was to Cuba. In July 1991, under a storm of applause and embraces in Havana, Mandela spoke from the heart, and Fidel embraced him like a brother. It was an encounter between two giants of history—but also between two men who believed in justice without borders, who understood the power of example, and the cost of sacrifice.
The respect between them was always mutual. Even as president of South Africa, Mandela defended Cuba in the face of Western criticism. He refused to let his country’s friendships be dictated by powerful governments. Fidel, for his part, admired Mandela’s unbreakable dignity, and his ability to transform suffering into reconciliation.
More than a historical anecdote or a political gesture, the friendship between Fidel and Mandela is a symbol—a bridge between two peoples, two continents, and two revolutionary visions of humanity.
In a press conference held alongside U.S. President Bill Clinton in Cape Town, South Africa, on March 27, 1998, Madiba declared:
“Fidel Castro is one of my greatest friends. I am proud to be among those who support the right of the Cuban people to choose their own destiny. The sanctions punishing Cubans for having chosen self-determination run counter to the world order we are trying to build. The Cubans provided us with both resources and training to fight and to win. I am a loyal man, and I will never forget that in the darkest moments of our struggle against apartheid, Fidel Castro stood with us.”