Special Operations.Com
Special operations soldier simulates ambush of Mi 14 helicopter.
Cuba's special operations units are smaller and less proficient than they
were a decade ago, but they can still perform selected military and internal
security missions.
 |
The Cuban Revolutionary Armed (FAR) retains a battalion-size airborne unit and other special operations forces. |
|
Special operations training continues, albeit on a smaller scale than in the past. |
Commander, Special Troops: Lt. Col. Roberto Marquez Orozco
Special Troops are part of the official structure of the Ministry of the Interior and are the most highly trained of all Cuba's military personnel. It is estimated that Special Troops number 2,000 in personnel and are divided into 2 battalions. Special Troops utilize light weaponry and explosives.
They were originally created to provide for the personal security of Fidel Castro and have been involved in other important activities which include the assistance of Latin American guerrillas and to ferment insurgencies as well as charged with carrying out often politically sensitive "special operations" under the direct command of Fidel Castro. Special Troops were the first Cuban personnel that went to Angola in 1975 and were sent before the dispatch of regular FAR combat troops.
Note: The disintegration of the Soviet bloc in 1989 triggered a profound deterioration of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR), transforming the institution from one of the most active militaries in the Third World into a stay-at-home force that has minimal conventional fighting ability.