Led by Che Guevara and Fidel Castro, the Cuban revolution of January 1st, 1959, overthrew the US-supported dictator Fulgencio Batista with a commitment to provide free healthcare, education and sport for all.
The United States and Cuba have been in conflict ever since, even though the US has made peace with other communist countries.
The embargo that the US imposed on Cuba 35 years ago has been condemned by the general assembly of the United Nations, as contrary to international law. In each of the past seven years, the United Nations has condemned the US blockade of Cuba, most recently by a vote of 157 to two.
The embargo bans sales of food and medicine to Cuba, not only by US companies, but also by foreign firms selling medicines or equipment with US components.
Effectively, this bars access to nearly half of new drugs on the world market.
Of the 1,300 drugs available in Cuba in 1991, doctors now have access to only 890, and many of these, including drugs for cancer, diabetes, heart disease and asthma, are available only intermittently.
According to the American Association for World Health and the American Public Health Association, the embargo has caused a significant deterioration in Cuba's food-production and healthcare sectors.
Cuban medical services also lack technology for needs as basic as kidney dialysis, dentistry and ophthalmology. In the past 10 years, the medical services have seen consistent deterioration as the result of the embargo.
Cuba alleges that the ban on the sale of US foodstuffs has contributed to malnutrition among pregnant women, resulting in increases in low-birthweight babies and a high maternal-mortality rate. The average daily calorific intake dropped 33 per cent between 1989 and 1993.
In 1996, the US Congress strengthened the embargo by passing the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act, also known as the Helms-Burton Act. Title III, which permits legal actions against firms trafficking in confiscated properties in Cuba, has drawn criticism from America's allies.
In its final form, the law requires the US president to waive or enforce Title III provisions every six months.
Bill Clinton suspended Title III throughout his second term of office in the interests of supporting democratic change and human rights.
Last July, President Bush announced a continued suspension of Title III, citing, as did his predecessor, efforts by European countries and other US allies to push for democratic change in Cuba.
"Our actions will encourage support for the embargo and further strengthen, not weaken, the growing multilateral, multifaceted movement to promote democracy and human rights in Cuba," he said.